Slovenian Economy Minister Andrej Vizjak has said that Slovenia will work towards a European patent litigation system and community patent during its Presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2008.

Speaking to the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs earlier this week, Mr Vizjak said a "strengthened and improved European patent system" was crucial for "competitiveness and growth of the European economy".

"Our goal is to find consensus on a system which takes account of the needs of industry and which can also lead to an agreement on community patents," he said.

Minister Vizjak will be one of the speakers at the European Patent Forum 2008, which is being held in Ljubljana in May.

Organised by the EPO with the European Commission, the Slovenian Intellectual Property Office and the Government of Slovenia, this year's Forum will focus on patenting and climate change.

In the evening, guests will be invited to watch as the European Inventor of the Year awards are presented for the third time.

(www.epo.org)