EQE Paper F study plan

Map the Paper F legal-questions format: confirm the number of questions, the answer structure expected, the weighting of legal reasoning versus practical advice, and the time budget per question, and write these parameters on a one-page reference sheet.

Build a personal outline of the legal areas Paper F draws on (patentability, novelty and inventive step, priority, added matter, unity, entitlement, procedural deadlines, and opposition/appeal routes) and rate your current confidence in each area from 1 to 5.

Draft a reusable answer skeleton with fixed sections for legal issue, applicable provision, application to the facts, and conclusion, and test it once on a practice question without timing yourself.

Memorise the core patentability provisions of the EPC and the key case-law tests for novelty, inventive step, and industrial application, and recite them from memory without notes.

Practise distinguishing disclosure from enablement by writing short analyses of three hypothetical prior-art documents.

Solve two full Paper F practice questions under a strict time limit and mark your own answers against the issue-spotting checklist.

Work through priority entitlement, the definition of the same invention, and partial priority, and write a short worked example for each.

Analyse added-matter objections by comparing claim amendments with the application as filed, and produce a three-step checking routine you can apply under exam pressure.

Draft a one-page summary of the problem-and-solution approach with a worked numerical example.

Rehearse the procedural deadlines that appear most often in Paper F questions (response periods, opposition period, appeal period, and fee deadlines) until you can state them without reference.

Practise identifying procedural defects in a scenario and writing the corrective step and its legal basis.

Complete a full mock Paper F under exam conditions and record the time spent on each question.

Analyse your mock exam errors and classify each one as a knowledge gap, an issue-spotting failure, or a time-management failure.

Rewrite the two weakest answers from the mock and compare them side by side with your first attempt to show the improvement.

Drill the remaining weak areas with short, focused exercises of no more than 20 minutes each.

Practise the practical-advice style of Paper F by writing client-facing answers that recommend a course of action and state the legal risk.

Rehearse the interaction between national law and the EPC where a question raises cross-border issues.

Complete two half-length practice papers and mark them against the official marking scheme style.

Simulate a full exam under strict conditions, including a fixed start time and no interruptions.

Review the script against your issue-spotting checklist and record the score by legal area.

Identify the three highest-value topics to review in the final week and write a targeted revision list.

Review the final-week revision list and recite the core legal tests and deadlines from memory.

Rework the three weakest questions from the second mock without consulting notes.

Rehearse exam logistics: time allocation per question, answer order, and the procedure for handling a question you cannot answer.