Amendments to the Patents Act 1977 to provide for online file inspection

Guidance for business

The Patents Act 1977 (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (SI 2011/2059) come into force on 1 October 2011.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance so that business can familiarise themselves with legal changes before they are introduced.

What will the change mean?

The change will introduce an exception to copyright so that copyright in documents is not infringed when they are made available for online inspection by the Intellectual Property Office under s118 Patents Act 1977.

This will allow the Intellectual Property Office to make patent case files available for online inspection. Before the changes the Intellectual Property Office would have been infringing copyright by putting online documents which were not Crown copyright, such as letters from attorneys.

The change to the law will not allow the Intellectual Property Office to put online journals, articles or books which are on the patent case file but are available elsewhere.

How do I make a request for online inspection?

A request for online inspection under s118 Patents Act 1977 will be able to be made via our patent document and information service. The current method of inspection in person at the Intellectual Property Office’s premises will also continue.

Where can I get further information?

The Statutory Instrument and accompanying explanatory material is available from the legislation.gov.uk website .

Any questions arising from this notice should be directed to Mary Taylor on 01633 813822 or via email.