On May 29-31, 2019, the IP Mediation Conference and IP Seminar on Mediation and Communication organized by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) were held in Alicante, Spain, in which an EAPO representative participated.

Mediation is becoming an increasingly popular mechanism for resolving IP disputes. Modern trends in the use of mediation as an alternative to court proceedings for prompt and cost-effective settlement of IP disputes were considered within the Conference.

The participants got acquainted with the practice of mediation in United Kingdom, Singapore, China, the Baltic states, EUIPO, discussed the activities of the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, analyzed the practice of judicial mediation using the example of the Unified Patent Court, considered hybrid techniques of mediation and the use of artificial intelligence technologies in the context of mediation.

In the course of the Seminar on Mediation and Communication, the participants were acquainted with the technique of building a dialogue, methods of effective listening and other skills of constructive communication used by mediators in the settlement of IP disputes.

Along with the EAPO, the events were attended by representatives of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization, national IP offices from more than 40 countries, lawyers, judges, mediation experts, patent attorneys, representatives of universities and business circles of the European Union, China, Russian Federation, Ukraine, a number of African, Middle East and South American countries.