harmonisation
10 September 2013Patents

AIPPI 2013: Patent grace period “key to harmonisation”

An international year-long grace period for patents and the need for greater harmonisation have been suggested by the executive committee (ExCo) of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI).

Patent grace periods, which are provided in most countries, refer to the time period before the filing date of a patent application during which certain disclosures may not be considered prior art.

But according to a draft resolution presented to AIPPI’s ExCo, regional laws governing grace periods “differ significantly” in their scope and duration.

During an ExCo meeting at the AIPPI meeting in Helsinki, Finland on September 9, members expressed the need for a harmonised law on grace periods and to establish a fair balance between the interests of patent applicants and the public.

The discussion was the fourth time the AIPPI’s ExCo has considered the topic, having previously discussed it in 1980, 1982 and 2003.

This year’s resolution claimed that recent changes in various national laws, including the America Invents Act in the US and revisions to grace period law in Japan, have made the topic “ripe for discussion”.

Margot Fröhlinger, principle director for patent laws and international affairs at the European Patent Office, told the meeting it was a “long standing and controversial debate”.

“What is very clear from reports in Europe is that the issue of grace period has, and continues to, divide users and businesses,” Fröhlinger said.

“It is good news that a majority of people that have replied to a consultation [in the last year] would support a larger grace period for patents. I think the main consensus is that Europe would support the 12-month grace period if it was an element of a broader harmonisation package.”

The resolution proposes that the grace period “shall be 12 months preceding the filing date of the patent application or, if the priority is claimed, the earliest relevant priority date”.

It adds that the grace period “shall have no effect on the date of publication of the patent application”.

The resolution also pays close attention to the Tegernesse Expert Group meeting in 2011, where IP offices in Europe, Japan and the US identified grace periods as one of the topics key to international harmonisation.

“This is not a political discussion; it is about fact finding, analysis and an attempt to get a consensus. The outcome and any final decisions will have to be decided by our political masters,” Fröhlinger added.

Nearly 93 percent of the ExCo voted in favour of the proposals.

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