THE INDIAN PATENT ACT – 1970 (Amendment)

Submitted by: Mohit Kumar Verma

(Pharmacology 1st Year)Dept. of Pharmaceutical Science

Contents• INTRODUCTION

• MECHANISM OF IPR

• WHAT IS A PATENT ?

• TYPES OF PATENTS

• THE INDIAN PATENT ACT

• LAW AND REGULATIONS

• WHAT CAN BE PATENTED?

• PATENT LAW - SALIENT FEATURES

• NON-PATENTABLE INVENTIONS

• STAGES - FILING TO GRANT OF PATENT

• PATENT FIRST AMENDMENT ACT OF 1999

• THE PATENTS AMENDMENT ACT -2002

• THE PATENTS AMENDMENT ACT -2005

• PATENTS (AMENDMENT) 2010

• REFERENCES

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY• Intellectual property is the product or creation of the mind. It is different from

other properties in term that it is “intangible”. Hence it needs some different

way for its protection.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS• IPR is the body of law developed to protect the creative people who have

disclosed their invention for the benefit of man kind. This protects their

invention from being copied or imitated without their consent.

INTRODUCTION

Mechanism of IPR• Patents

• Copyrights

• Trademarks

• Industrial designs

• Layout designs of integrated circuits

• Geographical indications

• Plant Breeding Rights

• Trade secrets

What is a patent ?

• A patent is a grant from the government which confers on the

guarantee for a limited period of time the exclusive privilege of

making, selling and using the invention for which a patent has

been granted

Types Of Patents• Three types of patent are granted under the provisions of the

act, namely: 1. An Ordinary Patent (Original application)

2. A Patent Of Addition

3. A Patent Of Convention

• A second type of classification of patent is:

1. Product Patent

2. Process Patent

THE INDIAN PATENT ACT • In India the grant of patents is governed by the patent Act

1970 and Rules 1972.

• The patents granted under the act are operative in the whole of

India.

HISTORY The Patent Law of 1856

The Patent and Designs Act, 1911.

The Patents Act, 1970 and Rules 1972

The Patent amendment act 2005

Law and Regulations• Patents Act,1970

Patents Act of Amended -1999

Patents Act of Amended - 2002

Patents Act of Amended - 2005

Patents Act of Amended - 2010

• Patents Rules,1972 Patents Rules of Amended - 2003

Patents Rules of Amended - 2005

Patents Rules of Amended - 2006

Purpose of getting a patent……

• To enjoy the exclusive rights over the invention.

• The patent is to ensure commercial returns to the inventor for the

time and money spend in generating a new product.

What can be patented? In order to be patentable, an invention must pass

four tests;

1. The invention must fall into one of the five

“statutory classes”: Processes, Machines ,

Manufactures Compositions of matter, and New

uses of any of the above

2. The invention must be “useful”

3. The invention must be “novel”

4. The invention must be “nonobvious”

Patent Law - Salient Features• Both product and process patent provided

• Term of patent – 20 years

• Examination on request

• Both pre-grant and post-grant opposition

• Fast track mechanism for disposal of appeals

• Provision for protection of bio-diversity and traditional knowledge

• Publication of applications after 18 months with facility for early

publication

• Substantially reduced time-lines

Patentable Inventions

Invention must

Relates to a process or product or both

Must be new (novel) Involves an inventive step

Be capable of industrial application

Not fall under section 3 and 4

“NEW” MEANS……….

Invention must not be

Published in India or elsewhere

In prior public knowledge or prior public use with in India

Claimed before in any specification in India

Section 3 exclusions

Section 3(a)

1. Inventions contrary to well established natural laws

Examples1. Machine that gives more than 100% performance

2. Perpetual machine

Section 3(b) Commercial exploitation or primary use of inventions, which is

Contrary to 1. Public order or 2. Morality

Examples1. Gambling machine, 2. Device for house-breaking

Section 3(b) Commercial exploitation or primary use of inventions , which

Causes serious Prejudice to

Health or Human, Animal, Plant life or to the environment

Examples

Biological warfare material or device, weapons of

mass destruction

Terminator gene technology,

Embryonic stem cell

Non-Patentable Inventions• Inventions falling within Section 20(1) of the Atomic Energy

Act, 1962 are not patentable

Example:

Inventions relating to compounds of Uranium, Beryllium,

Thorium, Plutonium, Radium, Graphite, Lithium and more

as notified by Central Govt. from time to time.

STAGES - FILING TO GRANT OF PATENT

PUBLICATION OF APPLICATION

REQUEST FOR EXAMINATION

GRANT OF PATENT

3rd Party Representation

Revocation/Amendment

OPPOSITION

• PROMPTLY AFTER 18 MONTHS FROM P.D.

• WITHIN 48 MONTHS FROM F.D.

• ALL OBJECTIONS TO BE COMPLIED WITHIN 12 MONTHS

• WITHIN 12 MONTHS

FILING OF APPLICATIONPROVNL. / COMPLETE

Decision of Controller

EXAMINATION-ISSUE OF FER

Appellate BoardAppeal

Patent First Amendment Act of 1999:

Section 24A(1) mandate can be granted under Section 3 and 4

(and not under Section 5 which previously excluded drugs etc).

Controller to determine whether it is an invention falling

within Section 3 and 4, which will be the decisive factor for

granting the EMR.

Section 24B(1)(b) authorizes the grant of an EMR for five years

for inventions made in India on or after January 1, 1995 and for

which a claim for process patent has been made, and granted.

Omitted by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2002

Patents Amendment Act- 2002 A few important aspects of the Patents amendment act 2002

are mentioned below

Hastening the process of patent grant, a patent is granted

within approximately two years of filing an application.

The inventor had to fill a declaration of inventorship.

The amendment also made the Indian patent act GATT

compatible.

The Patents amendment act -2005 Some of the major features of the Patents amendment act 2005 are ;

Emphasis on Indigenous manufacturers

Both pre-grant and post-grant opposition avenues

In order to prevent "ever greening" of patents for pharmaceutical substances,

provisions listing out exceptions to patentability have been suitably

amended so as to remove all ambiguity as to the scope of patentability.

Product patent has been included in all fields of technology (that is drugs,

food and chemicals)

Inventions where only methods or processes of manufacture patentable:

[Omitted by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2005]

Patents (Amendment) 2010• General Amendment of ActThe principal Act is amended by the deletion of the words "Patent Office” wherever they appear and the substitution therefor of the word "Agency".• Registrar and other staff Act No. 15 of 2010The Registrar shall exercise the powers and perform the duties assigned to the Registrar by this Act and the Patents and Companies Registration Agency Act, 2010.

Patent Office

Head Office – Kolkata Branch offices at

Mumbai :- Maharashtra, Gujrat, M.P. & Goa.

Delhi :- Panjab, Haryana Himachal Pradesh J&K and UP.

Chennai:- Kerala & Tamil Nadu,

The Patent Office comes under the Ministry of Commerce &

Industry.

Each of the branch offices have their own fixed territory and accept

application forms from areas lying within its geographical limits.

References • An Act to amend the Patents (Amendment) Act. [16th April,

2010 ENACTED by the Parliament of Zambia ACT No. 14 of

2010 dated 13th April, 2010, No.14 of 2010 105

• Kishan Arora, The Patent Act, 1970 (39 of 1970) 1-4 (New

Delhi: Professional Book Publishers, 2007)

• Sajeev Chandran, Archana Roy and Lokesh Jain, Journal of

intellectual property right, Vol 10, July 2005, pp 269-280

• Bansal Parikshit ,IPR Handbook For Pharma Students and

Researchers, and Publishead by Pharma med Press2009