The European Patent Office (EPO) has announced that Mr. António Campinos was elected to succeed Benoît Battistelli as President of the EPO.

The five-year mandate of the new President will start on 1 July 2018.

Mr. Campinos is a Portuguese national who is currently the Executive Director of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).  Before that he has been a President of the Portuguese Institute of Industrial Property (INPI). He has a degree in Law from the University of Montpellier, a postgraduate degree in European Studies from the University of Nancy, and a Masters' degree in Public Law from the University of Montpellier.  He worked for the Portuguese Ministry of Economy and Innovation before becoming Director of Trademarks at the INPI in 2000.

“It is the first time that a national from the South of Europe is appointed as the head of the EPO. This decisive outcome shows how the European Patent Organisation has matured in terms of implementing strong governance and providing leadership in decision making that will serve European innovation”, Mr. Battistelli said.

We warmly congratulate António and wish him success for the new challenge!