EQE tutorials

Patskills has been running EQE preparation courses since 1969. For organisational reasons I will not be providing these courses in Geneva this year.

Instead I am planning to issue a series of audio slideshow tutorials covering different papers of the EQE. These tutorials will be made available free of charge.

The first tutorial will cover Claim Analysis based on the EQE pre-exam of 2014. It should be available soon.

I hope candidates will find these tutorials of benefit as a replacement to the Patskills courses and as a valuable complement to their ongoing training.

Brian Cronin
PATSKILLS

Learning from the EQE Pre-Exam

With the pass level raised to 70%, the pass rate for the 2014 EQE preliminary examination has dropped to 86%.

Obviously failed candidates have to review their answers to prepare for resitting the pre-exam in 2015.

For successful candidates, preparations for the papers they intend to sit in 2015 can begin in earnest. But the first step in these preparations could and should be a thorough revision of the pre-exam, checking the examiners report to reinforce understanding where your answers were correct, and learning by the correction of mistakes where your answers were wrong.

The pre-exam’s legal questions give a good lead-in to long-term preparation on « Part I » type legal questions for the D paper, by doing such questions one at a time at a slow pace, well spread out and correcting/improving your answers « immediately » as you go along. When reviewing the pre-exam’s legal questions always check the legal basis of the answer. Don’t forget, for the main exam you must provide the legal basis.

The pre-exam’s claim analysis questions are a powerful prelude for the A, B and C papers. They provide important insights on claim scope and the novel/not-novel boundary, important for A and B. But don’t take the pre-exam’s inclusion of « preferred/optional » claim features as a model for the claims you are expected to draft for paper A.

Seeking the basis in the description for the technical effect associated with a claim is a good apprenticeship for handling these issues in the C paper when you have to prepare to make an obviousness attack using the problem-solution approach. The pre-exam’s statements on problem-solution-effect are probably the hardest to reconcile. Pay attention to the examiners’ explanations and align your thinking. You need to master the problem-solution approach to survive the main exam !

Above all, don’t get into the mode of challenging the examiners answers ; this fosters a poor attitude to the exam and paves the way to becoming a disgruntled multiple resitter. Don’t attempt to justify your conviction that your answer is right and the examiners’ wrong. Instead, figure out the basis for the examiners’ reasoning and align to their answer. By accepting your mistakes and correcting them, you learn. By getting into a denial mode, you disperse your energy and stagnate.

The EQE Opposition Paper - Still a Challenge

In a previous post we observed that the EQE opposition paper has been reduced to manageable size and there are less opportunities to go wrong. It follows that candidates have a better chance that their preparations will be rewarded by success.

The new-format opposition paper nevertheless remains a challenge. Whereas there are less attacks and less opportunities to go wrong, less attacks means more credit per attack, and in case of a wrong attack or an attack that is correct but poorly presented, there is more credit to be lost. This dramatically shortens the path to failure in case of error.

As in the past, candidates will be well advised to develop a systematic approach for identifying attacks.

Its important to make sure of choosing the correct attack, lack of novelty or inventive step. For this, its going to be ever more important to focus long-term on the razor-edged novel/not-novel boundary.

Practice can be rounded off by writing attacks under timed conditions, aiming for high quality.

You can develop the right approach from the EQE Comprehensive book (details here) and by attending the PATSKILLS Opposition Course (www.patskills.ch).

Brian Cronin

PATSKILLS

Good news for EQE paper C sitters

The pass rate for the 2013 EQE Opposition paper C was 43.6%. A further 11.8% obtained a marginal fail that can be compensated. In comparison, the 2112 opposition paper’s pass rate was 33.1%.

The increased pass rate does not seem to reflect better preparation by the candidates, but could be the combined effect of a number of factors : shorter paper, less documents, less claims, less attacks, all leading to less stress so more candidates could manage the statement of opposition in the given time.

We can hope that the examining committees will take due note, and maintain a paper of the same « density » next year.

The message for new and repeating candidates for paper C is clear : the opposition paper has been reduced to manageable size and there are less opportunities to go wrong. It follows that you have a better chance that your preparations will be rewarded by success

Brian Cronin

PATSKILLS 

Next Opposition Course

The next Patskills Opposition Course (Paper C) will take place on 6-7 December 2013 in Geneva. Details and a Registration Form are available on www.patskills.ch.

The Drafting/Reply and Legal courses are on hold.

Brian Cronin
PATSKILLS

Next Available Dates

The next available dates for the upcoming Patskills courses are.

Opposition 14-15 December 2012
Legal 11-12 January 2013.

Details are available on www.patskills.ch.

New candidates and resitters are welcome. Please would you bring this to the attention of any trainees who may be interested.

Thank you

Brian Cronin
PATSKILLS

Cancellation of Patskills A-B Course

I regret to announce that the Patskills A-B course scheduled for 8-9-10 November 2012 has been cancelled due to a lack of participants.

Brian Cronin
PATSKILLS