In contrast with U.S. patent law, the applicant for a European patent need not be the inventor. The right to the European patent may validly be transferred before the filing of the application, e.g. by contract, by inheritance, or as a consequence of the "employee's rights" as determined by the applicable national law. However, the inventor has the right to be mentioned as such before the EPO. The EPO does not verify the accuracy of the designation of the inventor. The inventor may waive its right to be mentioned as such in the European patent application and European patent specification.