Expanding the powers of the patent attorneys’ self-governing body, changes to professional exams, regulating interdisciplinary liability and advertising—these are among the main proposals in the draft amendment to the Patent Attorneys Act being prepared by the Ministry of Development and Technology. According to the ministry, the changes are necessary to align the rights of patent attorneys with those of advocates and legal advisers. However, the patent attorneys themselves are calling for additional adjustments to the regulation.
“The Patent Attorneys Act has been in force for 24 years, and it is high time to adapt its provisions to current market realities,” said Dorota Rzążewska, President of the Polish Chamber of Patent Attorneys (PIRP), in an interview with Newseria.
The draft amendment proposed by the Ministry of Development and Technology foresees, among other things, strengthening the autonomy of the PIRP and limiting the supervisory role of the President of the Polish Patent Office (UPRP). The UPRP President would still issue opinions on regulations concerning minimum fee rates for patent attorneys’ services and retain the right to request disciplinary proceedings against a patent attorney.
“As we see it, disciplinary proceedings are an inherent element of exercising a profession of public trust, and therefore they should remain in the hands of the professional self-government. Oversight bodies should not interfere in the actions of individual attorneys—that is the role of disciplinary courts. However, if the system of supervision is properly structured, then the self-government authorities will provide the necessary information to the supervisory body,” explained Rzążewska.
A key element of increased autonomy would be giving the PIRP full control over maintaining the official register of patent attorneys, publishing it in the Public Information Bulletin (BIP), and issuing decisions on entries and removals.
“We have long advocated for the Chamber to manage the register of patent attorneys and trainees. Moreover, we want the register to be digital, making it easily accessible for institutions that need to verify whether someone is a qualified attorney entitled to practice,” Rzążewska noted.
The President of the PIRP would also administer the professional oath to new attorneys, and the profession would be given a symbolic boost in status by the introduction of official robes for court appearances—on par with other legal professions.
The ministry argues that these reforms are necessary to ensure parity between patent attorneys and other public-trust legal professions, both in terms of rights and professional organizations.
“One of our demands has already been met: we wanted the register of patent attorneys to include the PESEL personal ID number. We were the only legal profession entitled to appear before common and administrative courts without such data in the register, which blocked full use of judicial IT systems. It also created obstacles in using e-delivery tools and prevented us from adding our professional IDs to the mObywatel application like advocates and legal advisers can,” explained Rzążewska.
This change has been included in a Senate bill to amend the Patent Attorneys Act and is being processed separately from the government’s proposals.
Patent attorneys are also pushing for broader recognition of their role.
“Our profession is still not widely known. Beyond legal regulations, we need greater awareness of who patent attorneys are and how we can help businesses—our scope is constantly expanding. We are also calling for broader powers to initiate and conduct criminal proceedings in cases of intellectual property violations. If we are responsible for creating and protecting innovative solutions, trademarks, or industrial designs, we should also be fully equipped to defend them both civilly and criminally—we have the expertise to do so,” said the PIRP President.
However, the draft amendment does not provide such tools. A second additional request concerns intellectual property valuation.
“In Poland, awareness is lacking that intellectual property rights are an excellent means of securing claims, for example when seeking bank loans. But valuations are necessary for this. Therefore, IP valuation should also fall within the competence of patent attorneys, as we know how to do it reliably, ensuring credibility,” Rzążewska added.
