A Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office refuses to transfer oral proceedings from The Hague to Munich

In a decision of April 8, 2014 (T 1142/12), the Board of Appeal ruled that the EPO is organized whereby in the case that the Examining Division is located in The Hague, oral proceedings are to be held in The Hague and when the Examining Division is located in Munich, oral proceedings are to be held in Munich. This rule is based on a management decision on the organization of work within the EPO finally made by its president. Neither the Examining Division nor the Boards of Appeal have the competence to challenge this rule. Furthermore, the Board of Appeal refused to refer the question to the Enlarged Board of Appeal.