A (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: "change for the worse") occurs in law when as the result of an

appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

, the

appellant In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

is put in a worse position than if there had been no appeal. For example, an appellant in a

criminal case Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...

might receive a more severe sentence on appeal than in their original trial. Whether or not ''reformationes in peius'' are allowed depends on the jurisdiction and the applicable procedural law. In civil law jurisdictions, ''reformationes in peius'' are generally not allowed in appeals in

administrative law Administrative law is the division of law that governs the activities of government agency, executive branch agencies of Forms of government, government. Administrative law concerns executive branch rule making (executive branch rules are gener ...

cases and in

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

and

civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

appeals if the “other” party, i.e. the state in a criminal case, appeals the decision. Thus, a defendant needs never fear appeal an unjust conviction, such as a guilty verdict; a negative shift, such as a more severe penalty, can only result from the prosecution appealing it (as well).

Prohibition at European Patent Office

Under the

case law Case law, also used interchangeably with common law, is law that is based on precedents, that is the judicial decisions from previous cases, rather than law based on constitutions, statutes, or regulations. Case law uses the detailed facts of a l ...

of the

Boards of Appeal of the European Patent Office The European Patent Convention (EPC), the multilateral treaty instituting the legal system according to which European patents are granted, contains provisions allowing a party to appeal a decision issued by a first instance department of the Euro ...

(EPO), a board cannot put a sole appellant in a worse position than if there had been no appeal of the first instance decision. In relation to appeals, the term "prohibition of ''reformatio in peius''" thus essentially means that a person should not be placed in a worse position as a result of filing an appeal. Thus, in general, EPO Boards of Appeal are prevented in opposition appeal proceedings from going beyond the request of a sole appellant to put it in a worse position than before the appeal. The central case detailing the principle is G 4/93, consolidated with G 9/92. The principle, however, has exceptions, as laid out for example in decision G 1/99. In that case, an error of judgement had been made by an Opposition Division in allowing the addition of a limiting feature going beyond the content of the application as filed (contrary to ). The board allowed the patent proprietor to file requests to overcome the deficiency since Still under the case law of the Boards of Appeal of the EPO, the doctrine of ''reformatio in peius'' does not, however, apply separately to each point or issue decided or to the reasoning leading to the impugned decision. "According to the established case law of the boards of appeal, the doctrine of reformatio in peius does not apply separately to each point or issue decided, or to the reasoning leading to the impugned decision (see T 149/02 of 25 July 2003, point 3.2.1)." i
EPO Board of Appeal decision T 0384/08 of 26 June 2009
Reasons 2.

References

{{European Patent Organisation European Patent Organisation Latin legal terminology Legal procedure

Prohibition at European Patent Office

See also

References