1. Key takeaways
Reasonable number of auxiliary requests
To ascertain what constitutes a reasonable number of auxiliary
requests, several factors are to be considered: the complexity of
the technology involved, the number of prior art documents, the
individual validity attacks and the presentation and structure of
the auxiliary requests.
It is not relevant whether there are multiple proceedings in
relation to the patent in suit or proceedings in other patents of
the same family, whether different bodies are making decisions or
whether the claims encompass a large number of features.
While the RoP do not provide a sanction in case of an
unreasonable number of auxiliary requests, the court intends to
deal with the auxiliary requests in order up to a reasonable
number.
