News Excerpt: 

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry notified the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024 to amend the Patents Rules, 2003.

What is a Patent?

A Patent is a statutory right for an invention granted for a limited period of time to the patentee by the Government, in exchange of full disclosure of his invention for excluding others, from making,using, selling, importing the patented product or process for producing that product for those purposes without his consent.

• Term of a patent in the Indian system

• • The term of every patent granted is 20 years from the date of filing of application. However, for applications filed under the national phase under Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the term of patent will be 20 years from the international filing date accorded under PCT.

• Act governs the patent system in India

• The patent system in India is governed by the Patents Act, 1970 (No.39 of 1970) as amended by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2005 and the Patents Rules, 2003. 
• The Patent Rules are regularly amended in consonance with the changing environment, most recent being in 2016.

About Patent Rule 2024: 

• The Patent Rules, 2024 has been officially notified, marking a significant milestone in the journey towards fostering innovation and economic development. 
• These rules introduce several provisions aimed at simplifying the process of obtaining and managing patents, thereby facilitating a conducive environment for inventors and creators. 
• It is expected to accelerate economic development of the nation through science and technology.

Key Features of New patent rule 2024: 

• Streamlining Pre-grant Opposition Rules: The procedure to file and dispose of the Pre-grant representation by way of opposition under Section 25(1) has been further streamlined and made more explicit by providing ways to dispose of the representation and fixing fees to file such representation.
• Reduce in Time Limits and Procedures: Time limit to furnish foreign application filing details in Form 8 has been changed from six months from the date of filing of application to three months from the date of issuance of the first examination report.
• Introduction of Certification of Inventorship: A unique provision for the New ‘Certificate of Inventorship’ has been introduced to acknowledge the contribution of inventors in the patented invention.
• Decreased time Restriction: The time restriction for submitting requests for examinations has been shortened from 48 months to 31 months from the date of application submission, whichever comes first, due to the rapid advancement of technology.
• Reduction in Renewal Fees: Renewal fees can now be reduced by 10% if paid in advance through electronic mode for at least four years.
• Simplified Extension of Time Limits: Provision to extend time limit and condone delay in filing has been further simplified and made more explicit to ease in practice.
• Now, the time for doing any act/proceeding may be extended any number of times up to six months by a request in prescribed manner.

• Introduction of New Forms and Provisions: New forms, such as Form 31 for claiming benefits of Grace period under Section 31, have been introduced.
• Increased Patent Activity: The amendments come amidst increased patent activity in India, with record-high patent applications and grants in recent years.
• Frequency to file the statements of working of patents in Form 27 has been reduced from once in a financial year to once in every three financial years.