Ley de Patentes (Ley N° 1967/550 de 15 de diciembre de 1967, modificada al Ley N° 1995/1695 de 22 de diciembre de 1995), Finlandia

Patents Act

No. 550 of December 15, 1967, as amended by Acts No. 653/67 of 29 December 1967, No. 575/71 of 2 July 1971, No. 407/80 of 6 June 1980, No. 387/85 of 10 May 1985, No. 801/91 of 10 May 1991, No. 577/92 of 26 June 1992, No. 1034/92 of 13 November 1992, No. 1409/92 of 18 December 1992, No. 593/94 of 28 June 1994, No. 717/95 of 21 April 1995 and No. 1695/95 of 22 December 1995

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Sections

Chapter 1 General Provisions

1. Anyone who has made an invention which is susceptible of industrial application, or his successor in title, shall be entitled, on application, to a patent and, thereby, to the exclusive right to exploit the invention commercially, in accordance with this Act.

The following, as such, shall not be regarded as inventions:

(1)

discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods;

(2)

aesthetic creations;

(3)

schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business, and programs for computers;

(4) presentations of information. Likewise, methods for surgical or therapeutic treatment or diagnostic methods, practiced on humans or

animals, shall not be regarded as inventions. This provision shall not, however, preclude the grant of patents
for products, including substances and compositions, for use in any of these methods.
Patents shall not be granted for:

(1)

inventions the exploitation of which would be contrary to morality or public policy;

(2)

plant or animal varieties or essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals. However, patents may be granted for microbiological processes or the products thereof.

2. Patents may only be granted for inventions which are new in relation to what was known before the filing

date of the patent application and which also differ essentially therefrom.
Everything made available to the public in writing, in lectures, by public use or otherwise shall be
considered as known.

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Also the contents of a patent application filed in this country before said filing date shall be considered as known if that application becomes available to the public pursuant to Section 22. Likewise, the contents of a utility model application filed in this country before the filing date of the patent application shall be deemed to have become known if said application becomes available to the public pursuant to Section 18 of the Utility Model Act. The condition in the first paragraph that the invention must differ essentially from what was known before the filing date of the patent application, does not, however, apply in respect of the contents of such patent or utility model applications.

Applications referred to in Chapter 3 shall, for the purposes of the second paragraph, in certain cases have the same effect as patent applications filed in this country, pursuant to provisions laid down in Sections 29 and 38.

The provision in the first paragraph, requiring that an invention be new, shall not preclude the grant of patents for known substances or compositions for use in a method referred to in the third paragraph of Section 1, provided that the use of the substance or composition is not known for such method.

Patents may be granted, however, for inventions made available to the public within the six months preceding the filing date of the application if disclosure was the result of:

(1)

an evident abuse in relation to the applicant or his predecessor in title; or

(2)

the fact that the applicant or his predecessor in title had displayed the invention at an official, or officially recognized, international exhibition falling within the terms of the Convention on International Exhibitions signed at Paris on November 22, 1928 (Finnish Treaty Series 36/37).

3. The exclusive right conferred by a patent shall imply, with the exceptions stated below, that no one may

exploit an invention, without the owner’s consent, by:

(1)

making, offering, putting on the market or using a product protected by the patent, or importing or possessing such product for these purposes;

(2)

using a process protected by the patent or offering such process for use in this country if he knows or if it is evident from the circumstances that the use of the process is prohibited without the consent of the owner of the patent;

(3)

offering, putting on the market or using a product obtained by a process protected by the patent

or importing or possessing such product for these purposes. A patent shall also confer on its owner the exclusive right to prevent any person not having his consent from supplying or offering to supply any person not entitled to exploit the invention with the means of working the invention in this country in relation to an essential element of the invention where such other person knows, or where it is evident from the circumstances, that the means are suitable and intended for working the invention. This provision shall not apply where the means are staple commercial products, except where such other person attempts to induce the receiver to commit any of the acts referred to in the first paragraph of this Section. For the purposes of this paragraph, any person using the invention in a manner referred to in the third paragraph, item (1), (2) or (4), shall not be regarded as entitled to exploit the invention.

The exclusive right shall not apply to:

(1)

use which is not commercial;

(2)

use of a patented product that has been put on the market within the European Economic Area by the owner of the patent or with his consent;

(3)

use in experiments relating to the invention as such;

(4)

preparation in a pharmacy of a medicine prescribed by a physician in individual cases or treatment given with the aid of a medicine so prepared.

4. Any person who, at the time the patent application was filed, was commercially exploiting the invention in this country may continue to do so, notwithstanding the grant of a patent, provided that the general nature of such previous exploitation is maintained and that the exploitation does not constitute an evident abuse in relation to the applicant or his predecessor in title. Such right of exploitation shall also be afforded, subject to the same conditions, to any person who has made substantial preparations for commercial exploitation of the invention in this country.

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The right afforded under the first paragraph above can only be transferred to other parties together with the business in which it originated or in which exploitation was intended to take place.

1. Notwithstanding the patent, an invention may be exploited on foreign vessels, aircraft or other means of
2. transport for their own needs when temporarily entering Finland in regular traffic or otherwise. The Government may decree that, notwithstanding the grant of a patent, spare parts and accessories for aircraft may be imported into the country and used here for the repair of aircraft belonging to a foreign State in which corresponding privileges are granted in respect of Finnish aircraft.
1. A patent application relating to an invention disclosed not earlier than 12 months before the date of filing in an application for a patent or a utility model filed in Finland or in an application for a patent, an

inventor’s certificate or utility model protection filed in another country party to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (Treaty Series 36/10 and 43/15) or the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (Finnish Treaty Series 5/95) shall be deemed, for the purposes of the first, second and fourth paragraphs of Section 2 and of Section 4, to have been filed at the same time as the earlier application if the applicant so requests. Such priority may also be enjoyed under an earlier application for protection filed in a country not party to the above agreements if the corresponding priority deriving from a Finnish application is granted in such country and if the laws of such country substantially conform to the above agreements.

The Government, or a patent authority appointed by the Government, shall lay down the manner in which priority claims shall be filed and the documents to be submitted in support of claims. Where such requirements are not satisfied, priority shall not be granted.

Chapter 2 Patent Applications and Processing

1. “Patent Authority” shall mean the Patent Authority of Finland unless otherwise stated. The Patent Authority of Finland is the National Board of Patents and Registration.
2. Applications for patents shall be filed in writing with the Patent Authority or, in the cases referred to in

Chapter 3, with the patent authority of another country or with an international organization.
The application shall contain a description of the invention, together with drawings where necessary, and a
precise statement of the subject matter for which patent protection is sought (one or more claims). The fact
that the invention relates to a chemical compound shall not mean that a specific use must be disclosed in the
claim. The description shall be sufficiently clear to enable a person skilled in the art, with the guidance
thereof, to carry out the invention. An invention relating to a microbiological process or to a product thereof
shall be regarded, in the cases referred to in Section 8a, as disclosed with sufficient clarity only if the
requirements set out in that Section are also satisfied.

An application shall also contain an abstract of the description and claims. The abstract shall merely serve

for use as technical information and may not be taken into account for any other purpose.
The inventor’s name shall be stated in the application. If a patent is applied for by a person other than the
inventor, the applicant shall be required to prove his title to the invention.

The description, abstract and claims shall be written in Finnish or Swedish in compliance with the language
laws in force. If the abstract and the claims are written in one only of the two national languages, the Patent
Authority shall have the abstract and the claims translated into the other national language before the
application is made available to the public under the second paragraph of Section 22. The applicant shall
pay the prescribed translation fee. Where the applicant is a foreigner, the description shall be written in
Finnish and the abstract and the claims in Finnish and Swedish. However, all applicants shall be entitled to
write the description, abstract and claims in both languages.

The applicant shall pay the prescribed application fee. The prescribed annual fee shall also be paid for the application in respect of each year that has begun before a final decision is given on the application. A fee

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year shall be computed the first time from the day when the application was filed or is deemed to have been filed, and thereafter from the corresponding calendar day.

8 a. If the carrying out of the invention involves the use of a microorganism which is neither available to the public nor can be described in the application documents in such a manner as to enable a person skilled in the art to carry out the invention, a culture of the microorganism shall be deposited no later than the date of filing of the application. The culture shall be continuously on deposit thereafter so that any person entitled under this Act to a sample of the culture may have the sample furnished in Finland. The Government shall determine where deposits may be made.

If a deposited culture ceases to be viable or if samples of the culture cannot be furnished for other reasons, it may be replaced by a new culture of the same microorganism as prescribed by the Government. Once this has been done, the new deposit shall be deemed to have been made on the date of the previous deposit.

1. If the applicant so requests and pays the prescribed fee, the Patent Authority shall, under conditions laid
   down by Government decree, arrange for a novelty search by the International Searching Authority under
   Article 15(5) of the Patent Cooperation Treaty done at Washington on June 19, 1970.
   
2. A patent may not be applied for in respect of two or more inventions that are independent of each other
   in the same application.
   
3. If a patent is applied for in respect of an invention disclosed by the applicant in an earlier application on
   which no final decision has been given, the later application shall, at the request of the applicant and on the
   conditions laid down by the Government, be deemed to have been filed at the time the documents disclosing
   the invention were filed with the Patent Authority.
   
4. An applicant not domiciled in Finland shall be required to appoint a representative domiciled in the
   country to represent him in all matters concerning the application.
   
5. An application for a patent may not be amended in such a way that protection is claimed for matter not
   disclosed in the application at the time it was filed or at the time it was deemed to have been filed under
   Section 14.
   
1. If an applicant amends his application within six months of the date of filing, the application shall be
   
2. deemed, if the applicant so requests, to have been filed at the time the amendment was filed.
   A request under the first paragraph must be made within two years from the filing date of the application.
   Such request may be made once only and cannot be withdrawn.
   
6. If the applicant fails to satisfy the requirements for the application or if the Patent Authority has other
   objections to the acceptance of the application, the applicant shall be notified thereof by official action and
   be invited to file his response or to correct the application within the specified period of time. The Patent
   Authority may, however, make such changes to the abstract as it deems necessary without consulting the
   applicant.
   

If the applicant fails to file observations or take steps to correct the application within the period of time laid

down, the application shall be dismissed. The official action shall include a notice to that effect. A dismissed application may be reinstated if, within four months of the expiration of the time limit, the applicant files observations or takes steps to correct the application and, within the same period of time, pays the prescribed reinstatement fee.

If the applicant fails to pay the annual fee under Sections 8, 41 and 42, the application shall be dismissed without official notification. Applications dismissed for such reason may not be reinstated.

16. If, after the applicant has filed his observations, there still remains an obstacle to acceptance of the application which the applicant has had an opportunity to comment on, the application shall be rejected, unless there is reason to issue a further official notification to the applicant.

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1. If a person other than the applicant claims before the Patent Authority that he has title to the invention
   and if the circumstances are held to be uncertain, the Patent Authority may invite such person to institute
   proceedings before a court of law within a period of time to be laid down, failing which the claim may be
   disregarded in the further processing of the patent application.
   
2. If proceedings for title to an invention in respect of which a patent has been applied for are pending before a
   court, the patent application may be suspended until a final decision is given by the court.
   
1. If a person proves to the Patent Authority that he and not the applicant has proper title to the invention,
   the Patent Authority shall, if such person so requests, transfer the application to him. The transferee shall
   pay a new application fee.
   
2. If a request is made for transfer of a patent application, the application shall not be dismissed, rejected or
   granted until a final decision has been taken on the request.
   
1. If the application satisfies the formal requirements and no obstacle is found to the grant of a patent, the
   
2. application shall be accepted for public inspection under Section 21.
   Once an application has been accepted for public inspection, no request may be filed under Section 14 and
   the claims may not be altered in such a way as to extend the scope of protection.
   
1. The applicant shall pay the prescribed publication fee within two months from the date on which the
   application has been laid open for public inspection. Failing that, the application shall be dismissed.
   However, examination may be resumed if, within four months of the expiration of the prescribed time limit,
   the applicant pays the publication fee together with the prescribed reinstatement fee.
   
2. If an application for a patent is filed by the inventor and if, within two months of acceptance of the
   application for public inspection, he requests exemption from payment of the publication fee, the Patent
   Authority may grant exemption if the applicant is considered to have great difficulty in paying the fee. If the
   request is rejected, a fee paid within two months thereafter shall be deemed to have been paid on time.
   
1. When the publication fee under Section 20 has been paid or exemption from payment has been granted,
   the Patent Authority shall lay the application open for public inspection to afford the public an opportunity
   to file opposition against the application. The laying open of the application for public inspection shall be
   announced.
   

Opposition must be filed with the Patent Authority in writing within three months of the date of the

announcement.
From the date on which the application is laid open for public inspection, printed copies of the description,
claims and abstract, giving also the name of the applicant and of the inventor, shall be obtainable from the
Patent Authority.

22. The application documents shall be available to the public as from the date on which the application is

laid open for public inspection.
Eighteen months after the filing date of the application or, if priority is claimed, the priority date, the
documents shall be made available to the public regardless of whether the application has been laid open for
public inspection. If the application has been dismissed or rejected, the documents shall be made available to
the public only if the applicant requests reinstatement of his application, lodges an appeal or submits a
request under Sections 71a or 71b.

At the request of the applicant, the documents may be made available earlier than provided in the first and

the second paragraphs of this Section.
When documents are made available under the second and third paragraphs of this Section, a notice to that
effect shall be published.

If a document contains business secret and if such secret does not concern the invention for which a patent is sought, the Patent Authority may, on request and if good reason is given, order that the document shall not be made available, either in whole or in part. Where such request is made, the document shall not be made available until the request has been refused by a final decision.

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Where the culture of a microorganism has been deposited under Section 8a, any person shall have the right to obtain a sample of the culture once the documents have become available to the public under the first, second or third paragraph. However, this shall not mean that samples will be issued to any person not allowed by law or other rules to handle the deposited microorganism. It shall also not imply that samples may be issued to any person whose handling of the sample can be assumed to involve an obvious risk in view of the harmful properties of the microorganism.

Notwithstanding the provision in the first sentence of the sixth paragraph, samples of a deposit shall be issued only to a special expert, if the applicant so requests, until the patent application has been laid open for public inspection or a final decision has been taken without it being laid open for public inspection. The Government shall lay down the time limits for making such request and determine who may be called as an expert by a person wishing to obtain a sample.

A person wishing to obtain a sample shall submit a request in writing to the Patent Authority and give an undertaking in the terms laid down by the Government to prevent misuse of the sample. Where samples may be issued to a special expert only, the undertaking must be given by such expert.

1. On expiration of the period specified in the second paragraph of Section 21, examination of the application shall be resumed in order to reach a decision on grant of a patent. Sections 15 to 18 shall apply in respect of such examination.
2. Where opposition to the grant of a patent has been filed, the applicant shall be notified thereof and given an opportunity to make observations on the opposition.
1. An applicant may appeal from a final decision of the Patent Authority if the decision is not in his favor. Where a decision to grant a patent is taken despite duly filed opposition, the person who filed the opposition may lodge an appeal. Such appeal may be examined, even if the appellant withdraws his appeal, where special circumstances warrant.

A decision rejecting a request for reinstatement under the third paragraph of Section 15 or the first paragraph of Section 20 or decisions granting a request for transfer of an application under Section 18 may be appealed from by the applicant. Decisions rejecting a request for transfer of an application under Section 18 may be appealed from by the person making the request.

Decisions rejecting a request for an order under the fifth paragraph of Section 22 may be appealed from by the applicant who made the request.

1. Appeals under Section 24 shall be heard by the Board of Appeals of the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland. Separate provisions shall apply to the appeal procedure and the proceedings in the Board of Appeals.
1. A patent shall be granted once the application has been approved and approval has become final. Once a patent has been granted, it shall be announced and letters patent shall be issued. If the description or the claims have been amended after having been printed under the third paragraph of Section 21, printed copies of the documents, including the names of the applicant and the inventor, shall be made available at the Patent Authority in their final form.
2. Where an application which has been made available to the public is dismissed or rejected, the decision shall be announced once it has become final.
2. Granted patents shall be recorded in the Patent Register kept by the Patent Authority.

Chapter 3 International Patent Application

28. “An international application” shall mean an application made under the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

International applications shall be filed with a patent authority or an international organization (receiving Office) authorized under the Patent Cooperation Treaty and its Regulations to receive such applications. The

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receiving Office in Finland shall be the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland, as laid down by Government decree. Applicants filing an international application in Finland shall pay the prescribed fee. Sections 29 to 38 apply to international applications in which Finland is designated.

1. An international application to which a receiving Office has assigned an international filing date shall have the same effect in Finland as a Finnish application filed on the same date. The second sentence in the second paragraph of Section 2 shall apply only to an international application that has been pursued under Section 31.
2. An international application shall be deemed withdrawn as far as the designation of Finland is concerned in the cases referred to in Article 24(1)(i) and (ii) of the Patent Cooperation Treaty.
3. Where an applicant wishes to pursue an international application in Finland, he shall file with the Patent Authority a translation in Finnish or Swedish of the international application within 20 months of the international filing date or, where priority is claimed, of the priority date, to the extent prescribed by the Government, or a copy of the application where it is written in Finnish or Swedish. The applicant shall pay the prescribed fee to the Patent Authority within the same period.

Where an applicant has requested that the international application be the subject of an international preliminary examination, and if within 19 months of the date referred to in the first paragraph of this Section he had stated his intention under the Patent Cooperation Treaty and its Regulations to use the results of the international preliminary examination in applying for a patent for Finland, he shall comply with the requirements of the first paragraph within 30 months of that date.

If the applicant has paid the prescribed fee within the time limit laid down in the first or second paragraph, the required translation or a copy of the application may be filed within a further period of two months, provided the prescribed additional fee is paid within that same period.

If the applicant does not satisfy the requirements of this Section, the application shall be deemed withdrawn as far as Finland is concerned.

1. Where an applicant withdraws his request for international preliminary examination or his statement of his intention to use the results of such examination in applying for a patent in Finland, the international application shall be deemed withdrawn as far as Finland is concerned. The application shall not be deemed withdrawn, however, if withdrawal is made prior to the expiration of the time limit laid down in the first paragraph of Section 31 and if the applicant also pursues the application within the time limit laid down in the first or third paragraph of Section 31.
2. Where an international application has been pursued under Section 31, Chapter 2 shall apply in respect of the application and examination unless otherwise provided in this Section or in Sections 34 to 37. However, the application may be taken up for examination prior to expiration of the period laid down in the first and second paragraphs of Section 31 only if so requested by the applicant.

The applicant shall not be required to appoint a representative domiciled in Finland under Section 12 until

examination of the application begins. The second and third paragraphs of Section 22 shall take effect even before the application has been pursued, once the applicant has complied with the requirement under Section 31 to file a translation of the application or, if the application is in Finnish or Swedish, once the applicant has filed a copy of the application with the Patent Authority.

For the purposes of Sections 48, 56 and 60, the international application is deemed to have become available

to the public once the applicant has fulfilled the obligations under the third paragraph. Where the application satisfies the requirements as to form and contents laid down by the Patent Cooperation Treaty and its Regulations, it shall be accepted in that respect.

34. An international application shall not be accepted for laying open to public inspection nor be rejected before expiration of the time limit laid down by the Government, unless the applicant agrees to an earlier ruling on the application.

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1. An international application may not, without the consent of the applicant, be laid open to public inspection or be made public by the Patent Authority, in printed form or otherwise, prior to its publication by the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization or prior to the expiration of a period of 20 months after the international filing date or, where priority is claimed, after the priority date.
2. Where part of an international application has not been the subject of an international search or an international preliminary examination on the grounds that the application is held to include independent inventions and the applicant has not paid the additional fee laid down by the Patent Cooperation Treaty within the prescribed period, the Patent Authority shall ascertain whether the decision not to conduct a search or an examination was correct. Where the Patent Authority considers that the decision was correct, that part of the application that has not been the subject of a search or an examination shall be deemed withdrawn at the Patent Authority unless the applicant pays the prescribed fee within two months of the date

on which he receives notification of the Patent Authority’s decision. Where the Patent Authority considers

the decision to have been incorrect, it shall proceed with examination of the application in its entirety. The applicant may appeal against a decision taken under the first paragraph in those cases where the Patent Authority has found that the application includes independent inventions. The first and second paragraphs of Section 25 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Where the appeal authority upholds the decision of the Patent Authority, the time limit for payment of the fee referred to in the second sentence of the first paragraph above shall be computed as from the date on which the decision of the appeal authority becomes final.

1. Where a part of an international application has not been the subject of an international preliminary examination because the applicant has restricted the claims after being invited by the International Preliminary Examining Authority either to restrict his claims or to pay an additional fee, that part of the application not examined shall be deemed withdrawn before the Patent Authority unless the applicant pays the prescribed fee within two months of the date he received the corresponding notification from the Patent Authority.
2. Where a receiving Office has refused to accord an international filing date to an international application or has stated that the application is deemed withdrawn or that designation of Finland is deemed withdrawn, the Patent Authority shall review the decision if the applicant so requests. The same shall apply to any decision by the International Bureau to the effect that an application is deemed withdrawn.

A request for review under the first paragraph shall be filed with the International Bureau within the time limit laid down by the Government. Within that same time limit, the applicant shall file with the Patent Authority a translation of the application, to the extent prescribed by the Government, and shall pay the prescribed application fee.

Where the Patent Authority finds that the decision by the receiving Office or by the International Bureau was incorrect, it shall examine the application as provided in Chapter 2. If the receiving Office has not accorded an international filing date, the application shall be deemed to have been filed on the date that the Patent Authority considers should have been accorded as the international filing date. Where the application satisfies the requirements as to form and contents laid down by the Patent Cooperation Treaty and its Regulations, it shall be accepted in that respect.

The second sentence of the second paragraph of Section 2 shall apply to applications accepted for examination under the third paragraph of this Section if the application is made available to the public under Section 22.

Chapter 4 Scope and Term of a Patent

1. The scope of protection conferred by a patent shall be determined by the claims. The description may serve as guidance for interpreting the claims.
2. A granted patent may be maintained for 20 years from the date on which the application was filed.

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A prescribed annual fee shall be payable for the patent in respect of each fee year beginning after the grant. If a patent is granted before annual fees for the application have become due under Section 41, the owner of the patent shall also be required to pay annual fees for the fee years beginning prior to the grant of the patent, at the time the annual fee for the patent becomes due for the first time.

Chapter 5 Annual Fees

41. The annual fee shall be payable on the last day of the calendar month during which the fee year begins. The annual fees for the first two years, however, shall not become payable until the fee for the third fee year is due. Annual fees may not be paid earlier than six months before the due date.

For a later application under Section 11, the annual fees for fee years which have begun before the filing date of the later application, or which begin within two months of that date, shall in no event become due before two months have elapsed since such date. The annual fees for an international application in respect of fee years which have begun before the date on which the application was pursued under Section 31 or was taken up for processing under Section 38 or which begin within two months of such date shall in no event become due before two months have elapsed following the date on which the application was pursued or otherwise prosecuted.

Annual fees, together with prescribed additional fees, shall be payable within the six months following the due date.

42. Where the applicant or owner of the patent is the inventor and if he experiences serious difficulty in paying the annual fees, the Patent Authority may grant him respite in respect of payment if he makes a corresponding request no later than the date on which annual fees become due for the first time. Respite may be granted for up to three years at a time, but at most up to the third year that has elapsed following grant of the patent.

A request for prolongation of respite must be made before the existing respite has expired.

If the request for respite or prolongation of respite is refused, any fee paid within two months of refusal shall be deemed to have been paid on time. The annual fees for which respite of payment has been granted under the first paragraph may be paid

together with the additional fee prescribed in the third paragraph of Section 41 within the six months following the date up to which respite was granted.

Chapter 6 Assignment, Licences and Compulsory Licences

1. Where the owner of the patent has granted another person the right to exploit the invention commercially (a licence), the licensee shall not be entitled to assign his right to a further party, except as otherwise agreed.
2. The transfer of patents and the grant of licences shall be recorded, on request, in the Patent Register. The

same shall apply if a patent has been given as security.
On proof that a licence or a mortgage recorded in the Register is no longer in force, the entry of that licence
shall be deleted from the Register.

The first and second paragraphs shall apply mutatis mutandis to compulsory licences and to rights under the

second paragraph of Section 53.
The person last recorded in the Register as the patentee shall be deemed the owner for the purposes of law
suits and for other matters concerning the patent.

If a person acting in good faith has requested the Patent Authority to record in the Register that a patent has been assigned to him or that he has obtained a licence under a patent or a mortgage in a patent, prior

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assignment of the patent for rights therein shall not be enforceable against him if the other party has not previously requested registration as the assignee or holder of rights in the patent.

1. Where three years have elapsed since the grant of the patent and four years have elapsed from the filing of the application, and if the invention is not worked or brought into use to a reasonable extent in Finland, any person who wishes to work the invention in Finland may obtain a compulsory licence to do so unless legitimate grounds for failing to work the invention may be shown.
2. Subject to reciprocity, the Government may direct that, for the purposes of the first paragraph of this Section, the working of an invention in a foreign State shall be deemed equivalent to working in this country.
1. The owner of a patent for an invention whose exploitation is dependent on a patent held by another person may obtain a compulsory licence to exploit the invention protected by such patent if deemed reasonable in view of the importance of the first-mentioned invention or for other special reasons.
2. The owner of a patent in respect of which a compulsory licence is granted under the first paragraph of this Section may obtain a compulsory licence to exploit the other invention unless there are special reasons to the contrary.
1. In the event of considerable public interest, a person who wishes to exploit commercially an invention for which another person holds a patent may obtain a compulsory licence to do so.
2. Any person who was commercially exploiting in this country an invention which is the subject of a patent application, at the time the application documents were made available under Section 22, shall, if the application results in a patent, be entitled to a compulsory licence for such exploitation, provided there are special reasons for this and also provided that he had no knowledge of the application and could not reasonably have obtained such knowledge. Such a right shall also be enjoyed, under corresponding conditions, by any person who has made substantial preparations for commercial exploitation of the invention in this country. Compulsory licences may also relate to the period of time preceding the grant of the patent.
3. A compulsory licence may only be granted to a person deemed to be in a position to exploit the invention in an acceptable manner and in accordance with the terms of the licence who, before filing a claim for a compulsory licence, has made a verifiable effort to obtain, on reasonable commercial terms, a licence to the patented invention. A compulsory licence shall not prevent the owner of the patent from exploiting the invention himself or from granting licences under the patent. A compulsory licence may only be transferred to a third party together with the enterprise in which it is exploited or was intended to be exploited.
4. Compulsory licences shall be granted by a court of law, which shall also decide the extent to which the invention may be exploited and shall determine the remuneration to be paid and any other conditions under the licence. In the event of a substantial change in the circumstances, the court may, on request, revoke the licence or lay down new conditions.

Chapter 7 Termination of the Patent

1. If the annual fee under Sections 40, 41 and 42 is not paid, the patent shall lapse as from the start of the fee year for which the fee has not been paid.
1. The court shall declare a patent invalid, in a relevant action:
1. if it has been granted despite the fact that the requirements of Sections 1 or 2 were not satisfied;
2. if it concerns an invention the description of which is not sufficiently clear or, due to changed circumstances, is no longer sufficiently clear to enable a person skilled in the art to carry out the invention;

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(3)

if it contains subject matter not included in the application as filed; or

(4)

if it was granted despite the fact that the scope of protection was extended after the application

had been approved for laying open to public inspection. A patent may not be declared invalid on the grounds that the owner of the patent was entitled to a part of the patent only.

Legal proceedings may also be instituted, with the exception laid down in the fourth paragraph of this Section, by any person who suffers prejudice on account of the patent or by a public authority appointed by the Government for reasons of public interest.

Proceedings instituted on the grounds that a patent has been granted to a person other than the person entitled to it under the provisions of Section 1 may only be instituted by the person claiming entitlement to the patent. Such proceedings shall be brought within one year after the entitled person gained knowledge of the grant of the patent and of any other circumstances on which the proceedings are founded. Proceedings may not be instituted more than three years after the grant of the patent where the owner of the patent acted in good faith at the time the patent was granted or assigned to him.

53. Where a patent has been granted to a person other than the person entitled to the patent under Section 1 and where proceedings are instituted by that entitled party, the court shall transfer the patent to that party. The fourth paragraph of Section 52 shall apply with respect to the time limit within which proceedings shall be instituted.

Where the person deprived of the patent had, in good faith, begun commercial exploitation of the invention in this country or had made substantial preparation for exploitation, he shall be entitled, against reasonable remuneration and on other reasonable terms, to continue the exploitation already begun or to commence the intended exploitation, provided that its general nature is maintained. Subject to the same conditions, a holder of a licence recorded in the Patent Register shall have the same rights.

Rights under the second paragraph of this Section may only be transferred to third parties together with the
enterprise in which they are exploited or in which exploitation was planned.

1. Where the owner of a patent surrenders his patent in writing to the Patent Authority, that Authority shall
   
2. declare the patent to be terminated.
   Where a patent is distrained upon for a debt or litigation is pending on the transfer of a patent, the patent
   may not be declared terminated while the distraint is effective or until a final decision is given in the
   proceedings. The same shall apply if a mortgage right has been recorded in the Patent Register.
   
1. Where a patent has lapsed, been declared terminated, been declared invalid by a final court decision or
   been transferred, the Patent Authority shall publish a notice of that fact.
   

Chapter 8 Obligation to Provide Information

56. An applicant who invokes his patent application against another person before the documents in the application file have become available under Section 22 shall be required, on request, to allow such person to have access to the documents. If the patent application includes the deposit of a culture of a microorganism under Section 8a, such consent shall also include the right to obtain a sample of the culture. The second and third sentences of the sixth paragraph and the seventh and eighth paragraphs of Section 22 shall apply in the event of a person wishing to obtain a sample on the basis of such consent.

Any person who indicates in addressing himself directly to other persons or in announcements or by markings on goods or their packaging or in any other way that a patent has been applied for or granted, without at the same time indicating the number of the application or the patent, shall be required, on request, to furnish such number without delay. Where it is not explicitly stated that a patent has been applied for or granted, but the circumstances are such as to create the impression that this is the case, information as to whether a patent has been applied for or granted shall be given on request without delay.

de propriété intellectuelle