ブックタイトル縁19号

概要

縁19号

to correct its own error is enriching and has restored the faith of applicants in the trademark registrationprocess in India. In the same way, the Controller of patents must also give an opportunityof being heard before abandoning the application and must condone the delay if sufficient causeis shown.? The above decisions have been able to redress the grievances of trademark applicants who wereadversely affected.? If similar steps are taken by the Controller of patents, it would save the parties from financial lossesas well as mental agony. The object of patent law is to encourage scientific research, new technologyand industrial progress. Therefore, merely setting up goals is not sufficient but the actualspirit of the legislations enacted should also be incorporated and visible in the actions of the officesas well. Only then we can reach the expectations of our legislations and strengthen the faith ofthe general public in the administration.UNINTENTIONAL ABANDONMENT IN OTHER COUNTRIES・In the United States also, the patent rules allow revival of an abandoned application. To revive an abandonedapplication, the rule requires that the applicant file a petition explaining her unintentional delay andpay the petition fee. As before, the petition must accompany the reply to the outstanding office action ornotice, unless the reply was previously filed, and must provide a statement explaining why the delay, fromthe due date until the filing of the petition, was unintentional. Further, the regular rules for respondingoffice actions will be automatically extended up to six months on payment of prescribed fee. Howevereven after extended six months get crossed, it will be considered as abandonment. Such abandonment ifunintentional will be revived on a petition filed by such applicant for such unintentional abandonment.・Europe, like India, considers an application as withdrawn if, for example, a request for examination has notbeen made in a timely manner. However, unlike India, the EPO allows an applicant to request furtherprocessing of the European patent application even if it fails to observe a time limit. Further processingbefore the EPO can be requested by payment of the prescribed fee within two months of the communicationfrom the EPO regarding the loss of patent rights. Therefore, it goes to show that a remedy is availableto the applicant if he misses a due date as prescribed in the Act.NEED FOR SPECIFIC PROVISIONS FOR UNINTENTIONAL ABANDONMENT IN INDIA・Since the patent system of India is influenced by countries such as UK and USA, an effort should bemade to incorporate provisions such as unintentional abandonment in the Patent Act as it would encourageindividuals to foster innovation and bring out new ideas and inventions through their intellect. This inturn contributes to the economic growth of the country and aids in raising the status of the country inthe international market.・India's patent regime needs to reconsider whether to support an inventor in obtaining a valuable patentor, as it is today (with respect to the specific issue at hand), create procedural roadblocks or barriers forthe inventor. Therefore, we need to modify the Rules to notify applicants of "abandoned" applications andcreate a procedure for a delayed filing. Also, it is both credible and practical to contemplate amendmentsto the Rules while ensuring that the sanctity of the Patents Act is maintained.28 ENISHI IP Friends Connections August 2018 No.19