The Patents Bill was introduced to Parliament on 9 July, and will replace the Patents Act 1953. The purpose of the new Bill is to update New Zealand’s patent regime to ensure that it continues to provide an appropriate balance between providing adequate incentives for innovation and technology transfer while ensuring that the interests of …
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The decision of Dowsett J in Occupational and Medical Innovations Ltd ACN 091 192 871 v Retractable Technologies Inc [2008] FCA 1102, has highlight an apparently significant restriction in the operation of section 125 of the Patents Act. Section 125 allows a person to apply to a Court for a declaration that the exploitation of …
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IP Australia and the United States’ Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) have announced an agreement that will see IP Australia act as an international search and examination authority for international applications filed with the USPTO under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). US PCT applicants can now choose IP Australia to undertake their initial search and …
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The Advisory Council on Intellectual Property is conducting a review of what types of subject matters should be able to be patented in Australia and whether the law is meeting the country’s needs. It has released an Issues Paper [PDF] which requests that written responses to the questions in the paper and any other comments …
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The long awaited New Zealand Patents Bill having key provisions substantially modeled on the Australian Patents Act has been introduced into the New Zealand Parliament. It is expected that the first reading of the Bill and referral to the Select Committee should occur within the next few months. Once the Bill has been referred to …
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In the decision of the Full Federal Court of Australia in IGT (Australia) Pty Ltd v Aristocrat Technologies Australia Ltd [2008] FCAFC 131 Justice Gyles has thrown doubt on the correctness of the approach adopted by the Commissioner and the Federal Court on appeal under section 60(4) with respect to the Opponent’s onus in pre-grant …
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The decision of Jessup J in Sherman v Commissioner of Patents [2008] FCA 1026 concerns an appeal from a patent opposition, the Commissioner being a party as a result of the withdrawal of the original opponent. The Commissioner had filed an affidavit exhibiting a citation relied upon for the finding that the claims lacked novelty …
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This case (The Commonwealth of Australia v John Murray Charlesworth [2008] APO 16 (3 June 2008)) related to a successful challenge by the Commonwealth of Australia, c/– Minister for Defence under Sections 32 and 36 of the Patents Act in respect of a water concentration measuring device conceived by Dr John Murray Charlesworth while employed …
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Peter John Ward v Embrey Attachments and The Stanley Works [2008] APO 17 (12 June 2008) related to a Section 223 extension of time within which to comply with section 45(3). Although the need to file search results was abolished in October 2007, this decision is a reminder that the requirement still exists for those …
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Attached as a schedule to the judgment of Heerey J in Black & Decker Inc v GMCA Pty Ltd (No 3) [2008] FCA 932 handed down yesterday was an outline of the Federal Court’s new procedure for the management of patent cases to be implemented on a trial basis. The procedure is directed to narrowing …
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