Patent decision

BL number
O/452/00
Concerning rights in
GB2282144, EP0638392
Hearing Officer
Mr G M Bridges
Decision date
4 December 2000
Person(s) or Company(s) involved
Birtles, Lovatt & Evode Ltd v Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
Provisions discussed
PA 1977 sections 12, 13, 37
Keywords
Entitlement, Inventorship
Related Decisions
O/237/00

Summary

Final decision In an action in respect of Evode against 3M, the contribution of Messrs Birtles and Lovatt who were employees of Evode was held to be enough for them to be named as joint inventors and, accordingly, a finding of co-proprietorship between 3M and Evode was established. After the issue of an interim decision to allow for submissions having regard, inter alia, to the potentially restrictive provisions involving co-proprietorship as set out in section 36(3), simple joint proprietorship was in the event decided

Full decision O/452/00 PDF document12Kb