"[1] According to the Implementing Regulations, amendments before receiving the (extended) European search report are generally not allowed.
"[6] This test is often referred to as the "gold standard" for assessing compliance with Article 123(2) EPC at the EPO.
"[7] This legal provision illustrates the importance accorded by the Convention to the content of a European patent application as filed –i.e.
[10] An extension of the subject-matter of the European patent beyond the content of the application as filed is a ground of opposition,[11] and revocation.
Under the case law of the Boards of Appeal of the EPO, disclaimers are allowed only in certain circumstances, as confirmed in G 1/03 and G 2/03 decisions: "A disclaimer [which is not disclosed in the application as filed[16][17]] may be allowable in order to: In decision G 2/10, the Enlarged Board of Appeal further decided that: "1a.
Determining whether or not that is the case requires a technical assessment of the overall technical circumstances of the individual case under consideration, taking into account the nature and extent of the disclosure in the application as filed, the nature and extent of the disclaimed subject-matter and its relationship with the subject-matter remaining in the claim after the amendment.
"[20]Therefore, in G 2/10, the Enlarged Board of Appeal has essentially restored the possibility for an applicant or patentee to renounce part of its patent monopoly, subject to certain conditions.
[21] Article 123(3) EPC prohibits, after grant, amendments extending the protection conferred by a European patent.
[31] Rule 139 EPC relates to a specific form of amendments, namely corrections of errors in documents filed with the EPO.