Patent decision

BL number

O/332/02

Concerning rights in

GB 2291909 B, GB 2302110 B

Hearing Officer

Mr S N Dennehey

Decision date

9 August 2002

Person(s) or Company(s) involved

Halliburton Energy Services Inc v Baker Hughes Incorporated

Provisions discussed

PA.1977 sections 27, 76, 117, 125

Keywords

Added subject matter, Amendment

Related Decisions

O/047/99, O/001/01

Summary

Baker Hughes Incorporated applied to alter its two patents so that amendments made during the international phase of the PCT application from which they were derived, but lost during subsequent UK processing, could effectively be restored. The alterations would have the effect of removing from both patents one or more references to Figure 1 as illustrating prior art. It applied to make these alterations either as amendments under section 27 or as corrections under section 117.

Halliburton opposed the applications under section 27 on the grounds that they would extend the patents disclosure and that discretion to permit them should be refused. The Hearing Officer found that neither ground of opposition to the amendment requests was made out on the evidence, and allowed the amendments to be made to both patents.

Halliburton opposed the applications under section 117 on the grounds that there was no obvious error, nor any immediately evident correction. The Hearing Officer, refusing the applications, found that the error was not apparent from the patent specifications, and hence that the requirements for correction were not met.

No award of costs was made.

Full decision O/332/02 49Kb