About Tom Gregory: I’m Tom, a trainee patent attorney at Appleyard Lees IP LLP. My work is primarily focused on the mechanics and electronics sectors. I also have valuable experience in computer-implemented inventions and software. My recent work has been for clients in the aerospace and electronic consumer goods industries, and for university research departments across various fields of innovation.
At this point in the year, the most strong-willed are keeping up their new-year resolutions and have celebrated their success in completing dry January. I managed a mere four days of a 30-day yoga challenge. You can imagine how dry January went…
It’s also the time when revision for the European Qualifying Examination (EQE) is in full swing. The trainees at Appleyard Lees have their noses in their favourite EPC reference books (are you a Visser or Hoekstra fan?) and are getting stuck into past papers to test their knowledge.
Internal tutorials are a useful preparation tool and have been taking place regularly for a number of exam seasons. Experienced AL colleagues offer their time to mark and discuss an EQE past paper. There’s typically at least two tutorials for each of papers A, B, C and D. It’s often the case that different tutors run each tutorial for the same exam, allowing you to learn different approaches to the exam in question.
Trainees are split into groups of around three or four. I feel that a small group improves the discussion in the tutorial and contact with the tutor. This also prevents tutors being overloaded with papers to mark. Ultimately, this means that you get detailed feedback on your past paper attempt.
In the tutorial, the contentious points are discussed, and areas of weakness are highlighted (in a positive and constructive manner!). This is a great help in fine-tuning your approach in the weeks leading up to the exams. Armed with this feedback, experience of revision courses and some good hours of hard study, we’re well on our way to tackling the exams!
Best of luck to everyone sitting the EQE this March.
