Substantive Patent Law Treaty
Encyclopedia
The Substantive Patent Law Treaty (SPLT) is a proposed international patent law treaty
aimed at harmonizing substantive points of patent law. In contrast with the Patent Law Treaty
(PLT), signed in 2000 and now in force, which only relates to formalities, the SPLT aims at going far beyond formalities to harmonize substantive requirements such as novelty
, inventive step and non-obviousness
, industrial applicability
and utility
, as well as sufficient disclosure
, unity of invention
, or claim
drafting and interpretation.
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
aimed at harmonizing substantive points of patent law. In contrast with the Patent Law Treaty
Patent Law Treaty
The Patent Law Treaty is a patent law multilateral treaty concluded on 1 June 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland, by 53 States and the European Patent Organisation...
(PLT), signed in 2000 and now in force, which only relates to formalities, the SPLT aims at going far beyond formalities to harmonize substantive requirements such as novelty
Novelty (patent)
Novelty is a patentability requirement. An invention is not patentable if the claimed subject matter was disclosed before the date of filing, or before the date of priority if a priority is claimed, of the patent application....
, inventive step and non-obviousness
Inventive step and non-obviousness
The inventive step and non-obviousness reflect a same general patentability requirement present in most patent laws, according to which an invention should be sufficiently inventive — i.e., non-obvious — in order to be patented....
, industrial applicability
Industrial applicability
In patent law, industrial applicability or industrial application is a patentability requirement according to which a patent can only be granted for an invention which is susceptible of industrial application, i.e. for an invention which can be made or used in some kind of industry. In this...
and utility
Utility
In economics, utility is a measure of customer satisfaction, referring to the total satisfaction received by a consumer from consuming a good or service....
, as well as sufficient disclosure
Sufficiency of disclosure
Most patent law systems require that a patent application disclose a claimed invention in sufficient detail for the notional person skilled in the art to carry out that claimed invention. This requirement is often known as sufficiency of disclosure or enablement, depending on the...
, unity of invention
Unity of invention
In most patent laws, unity of invention is a formal administrative requirement that must be met by a patent application to become a granted patent. Basically, a patent application can relate only to one invention or a group of closely related inventions. The purpose of this requirement is...
, or claim
Claim (patent)
Patent claims are the part of a patent or patent application that defines the scope of protection granted by the patent. The claims define, in technical terms, the extent of the protection conferred by a patent, or the protection sought in a patent application...
drafting and interpretation.
See also
- Patent Cooperation TreatyPatent Cooperation TreatyThe Patent Cooperation Treaty is an international patent law treaty, concluded in 1970. It provides a unified procedure for filing patent applications to protect inventions in each of its contracting states...
(PCT) - Patent Law TreatyPatent Law TreatyThe Patent Law Treaty is a patent law multilateral treaty concluded on 1 June 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland, by 53 States and the European Patent Organisation...
(PLT) - World Intellectual Property OrganizationWorld Intellectual Property OrganizationThe World Intellectual Property Organization is one of the 17 specialized agencies of the United Nations. WIPO was created in 1967 "to encourage creative activity, to promote the protection of intellectual property throughout the world"....
(WIPO) - Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial PropertyParis Convention for the Protection of Industrial PropertyThe Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, signed in Paris, France, on March 20, 1883, was one of the first intellectual property treaties. It established a Union for the protection of industrial property...
- Strasbourg ConventionConvention on the Unification of Certain Points of Substantive Law on Patents for InventionThe Convention on the Unification of Certain Points of Substantive Law on Patents for Invention, also called Strasbourg Convention or Strasbourg Patent Convention, is a multilateral treaty signed by Member States of the Council of Europe on November 27, 1963 in Strasbourg, France...
(1963) - Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property RightsAgreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property RightsThe Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights is an international agreement administered by the World Trade Organization that sets down minimum standards for many forms of intellectual property regulation as applied to nationals of other WTO Members...
(TRIPs Agreement)
External links
- Substantive Patent Law Harmonization on the WIPO web site