United Law Company
 

Patents

ULC has a full-service patent practice and we service our clients with our in-depth knowledge, resources and experience when handling their Patent Portfolios. Our services follow and support the life cycle of the patent including search, application drafting and prosecution, amendments, maintenance, licensing, assignment, opinions and litigation.

This group comprises of an effective amalgam of technical and legal professionals. The Firm provides a gamut of legal services in the patent field. Advice on Patentability, Infringement and Validity of Patents.

The patents office was an attached department of Ministry of Industries & Production established in 1948 under the provision of section 55 of the Patents & Designs Act. 1911. The Patents Office currently is a part of IPO Pakistan (Intellectual Property Organization) under Cabinet Division. A patent for an invention is grant of exclusive rights to make, use and sell the invention for a limited period of 20 years. The patent grant excludes others from making, using, or selling the invention. Patent protection does not start until the actual grant of a patent.

A patent cannot be obtained on a mere idea or suggestion. Any person devising any improvement in a manufactured article or in machinery or methods for making it may upon disclosure of his improvement at the Patent Office demand to be given a monopoly in the use of it for a limited period. After that period, it passes into the public domain.

The patent owner may give permission to, or license, other parties to use the invention on mutually agreed terms. The owner may also sell the right to the invention to someone else, who will then become the new owner of the patent. Over the past decades, intellectual property litigation has dramatically increased as companies become more and more attuned to the value of intellectual property rights. As business, trade and the impact of technology becomes increasingly global, awareness of the value of intellectual assets grows.

Patent law protects inventive concepts which have an industrial application and grants the inventor exclusive right to prevent others from making, using and selling the patented invention for a fixed period of time in return for the inventor disclosing the details of the invention to the public. A patent rewards the investment of time, money and effort associated with research. It encourages innovation and investment in patented invention by allowing companies to recover their research and development costs during the period of exclusive rights.

Outline of the Procedure

The following are the various steps of the procedure for obtaining a patent

Filing the “Application”, accompanied by either a Provisional or a Complete Specification.

Filing the Complete Specification, if the Specification filed with the Application was a Provisional Specification.

Examination and Acceptance of application by the Patent Office.

Overcoming Opposition, if any, to the grant of patent.

Sealing the patent.

The application should be accompanied by the prescribed fee, and

The specification filed with the application should contain a reasonable description of the invention.

Varieties of Patents

Four kinds of Patents are granted under the Patents Ordinance. They are

An ordinary patent, which is dated as of the official date of the application for the patent.

A black/mail box application relating to chemical products intended for use in agriculture and medicines. The application will be kept dormant until 31St December 2004.

A patent claiming “Priority”, which is dated as of the official date of the corresponding application for patent first made in a country which is the member of WTO (World Trade Organization).

A patent of addition, for improvement or modification of an invention for which a patent has already been applied for or granted.

Practice Spotlight:

IP Litigation

Registration & Renewal

Licensing and Permitted use Agreements

Oppositions

Counterfeit Product Investigation/Seizure

Area of Practice

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