General Patent Rights are monopoly rights given by law to protect inventions. Patents offer significant protection against infringement. The patent must be registered. Patent protection lasts for up to 20 years. Renewal fees are payable after the fourth year. The monopoly period generally lasts 20 years. In order to obtain patent protection, details of the […]
Patent Protection Patents may be protected in United Kingdom by the grant of a UK patent by the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office. They may be protected by the grant of a European patent in the European Patent Office. The Patents Act together with the patent rules and manual of practice governing the application of […]
Application for Patent An application for a patent can be made to the Intellectual Property Office (UK) of the European Patent Office. A patent application can be made by any individual or corporate entity. Patent applications are generally dealt with by specialist patent attorneys. Patents generally cover products or processes. See the separate article in […]
Non-patentability Certain broad categories of things that might otherwise be the subject of an invention are excluded from patentability. this includes schemes rules and methods for doing business a computer program a scientific theory or mathematical method a literary dramatic musical or artistic work or any other aesthetic creation whatsoever a scheme rule or method […]
A person infringes a patent for an invention if in the United Kingdom a filed a patent is in force and he, without the consent of the proprietor, makes, disposes of, offers to dispose of, uses import or keeps an unpatented product. Where the invention is a process, there is infringement if a person […]
General The court action for infringement may be brought in the courts of the country where it is registered. In England and Wales, it is brought in the Patents Court (a part of the Chancery Division) or the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court. There is a special pre-action protocol applicable in patent matters. There is usually […]
General Copyright is a right to prevent copying and other mis-use of something which has been created by an artistic process. It is not protected by registration; its enforcement arises through court action. There is a separate legislation in relation to registered designs which gives protection for a shorter period than copyright. A registered design […]
Copyright General Copyright is governed in the United Kingdom by the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988. Copyright is defined as a property right which subsists in accordance with the legislation in the relevant types of work (see above). Copyright arises when the work becomes recorded in writing or otherwise. Copyright is a series of exclusive […]
Classes Copyright legislation affords protection for a number of different classes of work. The protection varies to some extent, with reference to the type of work concerned. Classic copyright legislation provides that copyright exists in an original literary dramatic musical or artistic work. The underlying concept or idea need not be original. The expression of […]
Rights of Copyright Holder The owner of copyright has the exclusive right to copy, issue copies, rent, perform, lend, show, play or communicate the work to the public. He has the right to adapt the work. Copyright is infringed by a person who without the licence (consent) of the owner of the copyright does or […]