Executive Summary
The 40th Global Digital Encounter (GDE) marked a significant milestone by celebrating one year of the Presidency of Sven Stürmann at the EUIPO Boards of Appeal (BoA). The session highlighted the role of the BoA as a cornerstone of the European IP system, offering legal certainty, transparency, and harmonization across the EU. At a time of global uncertainty and transformation, the BoA stands as a stabilizing institution with growing influence both within Europe and internationally.
Moderated by Prof. Laurent Manderieux (Bocconi University), this Encounter brought together leading voices from academia and private practice to discuss recent developments, institutional values, and future directions for one of the most impactful adjudicatory bodies in the EU IP system.
Objectives
- Celebrate one year of Sven Stürmann’s Presidency of the EUIPO Boards of Appeal.
- Understand the current and future role of the BoA within the European IP framework.
- Reflect on the legal and practical impact of BoA decisions for right holders in the EU and globally.
- Examine ongoing developments in the structure, jurisprudence, and outreach of the Boards.
Panel Members
- Sven Stürmann, President, EUIPO Boards of Appeal (BoA)
- Agata Sobol, Partner, Lexsential, Milan, Madrid, London, Rome
- Prof. Adoración Pérez Troya, Professor of Law, University of Alcalá, Spain
- Moderator: Prof. Laurent Manderieux, Professor of Intellectual Property Law at Bocconi University. Chair of the European IP Teachers’ Network (EIPTN)
Key Discussions
Structure, Independence, and Scope of the BoA
President Sven Stürmann opened the session with a presentation of the institutional architecture of the BoA, emphasizing its independence in decision making. He outlined the BoA’s jurisdiction over trademarks, designs, and recently also geographical indications under the new EU regulation on GI for craft and industrial products (GICI).
He underscored the importance of the BoA’s role as a quasi-judicial body within the administrative structure, which offers both accessibility and adjudicative legitimacy, noting that it delivers over 2,500 decisions annually, affecting thousands of right holders across Europe and beyond.
Quality and Predictability through Jurisprudence and Transparency
A major point of emphasis was the BoA’s growing body of jurisprudence, which now benefits from the systematic publication of all decisions. Stürmann also introduced the BoA’s Research Case Law Reports, which contribute to predictability, consistency, and transparency—values central to the institution’s public mission.
Prof. Adoración Pérez Troya commended the increasingly influential role of the BoA’s case law in guiding practitioners and academics. She noted the BoA’s efforts in aligning with the evolving standards of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) while simultaneously enriching legal interpretation through innovative approaches in areas such as distinctiveness, reputation, and use of evidence.
Global Relevance and Accessibility for Stakeholders
Agata Sobol provided a practitioner’s perspective on the strategic importance of the BoA for international clients and companies. She emphasized the role of the BoA as an appeal body of the administrative authority paying particular attention to ECJ caselaw on interpretation of the relevant EU legislation, and the mediation procedures offered to the parties as key factors in the BoA’s accessibility and global relevance.
She also highlighted the effectiveness of the BoA in maintaining good quality judgements and speed in complex cases, reinforcing its image as an efficient and trustworthy forum for rights enforcement and dispute resolution.
Future Directions and Strategic Vision
Stürmann concluded with a forward-looking reflection on the BoA’s strategic evolution. He identified AI technologies, sustainability, and institutional engagement with external stakeholders as key areas for future development. Indeed, the BoA intends to continue developing dialogue
- with its users to reply to their needs;
- with national and EUCJ Judges for fluid judicial consistency;
- and with Academia, to enrich its decisions also thanks to the wealth of knowledge and variety of opinions of academics.
While technology offers promising tools for procedural enhancement, he emphasized the continued necessity of human judgment and legal reasoning, particularly in sensitive or precedent-setting matters.
Both Pérez Troya and Sobol echoed this sentiment, welcoming the BoA’s commitment to progress while maintaining legal quality and user and academia’s trust.
Conclusion
The EUIPO Boards of Appeal, under Sven Stürmann’s leadership, have affirmed their role as a central pillar of the European intellectual property landscape. With a commitment to independence, quality, transparency, and consistency, the BoA continues to offer a reliable and globally relevant adjudicatory venue. As IP systems adapt to new legal, economic, and technological realities, the BoA stands out as an enduring European IP success story, benefiting rights holders not only in the EU but also across the global IP ecosystem.
