Федеральный закон «Об охране новых сортов растений» (опубликовано в Официальном федеральном бюллетене от 25.10.1996 г.), Мексика

21PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

MEXICO

Federal Law on Plant Varieties1, 2, 3

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

SOLE CHAPTER

Article 1

The purpose of this Law is to lay down the founda­ tions and procedures for the protection of plant breeders’ rights. Its implementation and interpretation for adminis­ trative purposes shall be the responsibility of the Federal Executive, acting through the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development.

Article 2

For the purposes of this Law,

I. “relevant characteristics” means phenotypical and genotypical expressions specific to the plant variety that permit its identification;

II. “Committee” means the Plant Variety Validation Committee;

III. “propagating material” means any reproductive or vegetative propagating material that can be used for the production or multiplication of a plant variety, in­ cluding seed for sowing and any whole plant or part of a plant from which it is possible to reproduce plants of seeds;

IV. “breeder” means the person, whether natural person or legal entity, who has through an improve­ ment process obtained and developed a new plant va­ riety of any genus and species;

V. “improvement process” means the technique or set of techniques and processes whereby a new plant

variety is developed and its protection made possible on account of its novelty, distinctness, stability and uniformity;

VI. “Registry” means the National Registry of Plant Varieties provided for in Article 33 of this Law;

VII. “Secretariat” means the Secretariat of Agricul­ ture, Livestock and Rural Development;

VIII. “breeder’s certificate” means the document is­ sued by the Secretariat that recognizes and protects the rights of the breeder of a plant variety that is new, distinct, stable and uniform;

IX. “plant variety” means the subdivision of a spe­ cies that comprises a group of individuals with similar characteristics that is considered stable and uniform.

Article 3

The functions of the Secretariat shall be the following:

I. to promote and encourage action for the protec­ tion of plant breeders’ rights that involves the par­ ticipation of the various departments and agencies of the Federal Public Administration, federated bodies and municipalities, and also the corporate and private sectors;

II. to prosecute applications for the protection of plant breeders’ rights and, on a ruling by the Commit­ tee, to decide on the issue of the breeder’s certificate, as provided in this Law and the regulations under it;

III. to issue licenses in the public interest in the cir­ cumstances provided for in this Law;

IV. to issue guidelines according to which clerical er­ rors in registration particulars and in documents is­ sued by the Secretariat are to be corrected;

1 Published in Diario Oficial de la Federación of October 25, 1996, Vol. DXVII, No. 19, page 23. 2 Original title in Spanish: “Ley Federal de Variedades Vegetales.” 3 Translated by the Office of the Union.

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22 PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

V. to publish applications for protection and plant varieties granted protection according to the terms and at the intervals specified in the regulations under this Law;

VI. to issue official Mexican rules as appropriate and to verify compliance therewith;

VII. to act as arbitrator in the settlement of such disputes as may be referred to it by the parties over payment for damages and prejudice arising from viola­ tions of the rights protected by this Law, and in all matters concerning alleged irregularities connected with the subject matter of this Law that are not pro­ vided for therein or in the regulations thereunder;

VIII. to decide on administrative appeals arising from the implementation of this Law;

IX. to order and conduct inspection tours, to de­ mand particulars and other information, to carry out investigations of alleged administrative offenses, to order and enforce measures to prevent or stop the violation of the rights protected by this Law and to impose such administrative sanctions as may be pro­ vided for in the relevant enactments;

X. to promote international cooperation through the exchange of experience with institutions in other countries responsible for the registration and protec­ tion of plant breeders’ rights, including the basic and further training of staff, the transfer of work and or­ ganization methodology, the exchange of publications and updating of relevant documentary files and data­ bases, and also the keeping of a catalogue of foreign researchers;

XI. to protect the biological diversity of plant varie­ ties that are in the public domain and which communi­ ties have the right to continue to exploit rationally as they have by tradition, which right shall be clearly specified in the regulations under this Law;

XII. such other functions as may be assigned to it by this Law or other enactments.

TITLE II

PROTECTION OF PLANT BREEDERS’ RIGHTS

CHAPTER I

RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF BREEDERS

Article 4

The rights granted to plant breeders by this Law shall be the following:

I. recognition as the breeder of a plant variety; that right shall be inalienable and imprescriptible;

II. utilization and exploitation of the plant variety and the propagating material thereof, either them­ selves or by third parties with their consent, exclu­ sively and for a limited period, with a view to produc­ tion, reproduction, distribution or sale, and also with a view to the production of other plant varieties and hybrids for commercial purposes; the term of those rights shall be:

(a) eighteen years for perennial species (forest and fruit trees, vines, ornamentals) and their rootstocks;

(b) fifteen years for species not included in the foregoing subparagraph.

The above periods shall be calculated from the date of grant of the breeder’s certificate and, when they have expired, the plant variety and its utilization and exploita­ tion shall become public property.

Article 5

The consent of the breeder of a plant variety shall not be required for the use thereof

I. as source or research material for the genetic im­ provement of other plant varieties;

II. in the multiplication of propagating material in so far as it is intended for personal use as grain for con­ sumption or seed for sowing, in accordance with the regulations under this Law and official Mexican pro­ visions enacted by the Secretariat;

III. for human or animal consumption for the exclu­ sive benefit of the person harvesting it.

Article 6

A breeder may waive the rights conferred on him by subparagraph II of Article 4 of this Law. The waiver shall be evidenced in writing, and to be valid it shall be entered in the Register. It shall be irrevocable and it shall cause the benefit and exploitation of the plant variety and its propagating material to become public property.

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23PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

Article 7

A plant breeder’s certificate shall be granted where the plant variety is:

I. new; the plant variety or the propagating material thereof shall possess this characteristic when:

(a) it has not been the subject of disposal on the national territory, or has not been the subject of such disposal for a year prior to the filing date of the application for a breeder’s certifi­ cate;

(b) it has not been the subject of disposal abroad, or has not been the subject of a disposal abroad for six years prior to the filing of the application in the case of perennials (vines, forest and fruit trees and ornamentals), in­ cluding their rootstocks, and for four years prior to the filing of the application in the case of all other species;

for the purposes of subparagraphs (a) and (b) above, no account shall be taken of such disposals as may have taken place without the consent of the breeder of the plant variety to be protected;

II. distinct; the plant variety shall possess this characteristic where it is technically clearly distin­ guishable by one or more relevant characteristics from any other variety known to exist at the time of the application for protection; such characteristics shall be susceptible of precise recognition and description; the regulations shall specify the various criteria that determine whether or not a variety is known;

III. stable; the plant variety shall possess this char­ acteristic where it retains its significant characteristics unchanged after successive acts of reproduction or propagation;

IV. uniform; the plant variety shall possess this characteristic where its significant characteristics are sufficiently uniform, subject to the expected variation attributable to its reproductive or vegetative propaga­ tion.

CHAPTER II

APPLICATION FOR THE BREEDER’S CERTIFICATE AND GRANT THEREOF

Article 8

The Secretariat shall receive and prosecute applica­ tions for the grant of breeders’ certificates. To that end, it may demand the delivery of the plant variety or of propagating material thereof in such quantities as it con­ siders appropriate, and also any additional documents and information that it considers necessary to determine whether the Mexican legal and regulatory requirements and official provisions have been complied with.

Applications shall be void if the applicant has not acceded to requests made to him within a period of three months following the notification of those requests.

Article 9

The application for a breeder’s certificate shall pro­ pose a variety denomination, which, to be approved, shall be different from any other existing in the country or abroad, shall comply with the other requirements laid down in the regulations under this Law and shall not be identical or confusingly similar to one previously pro­ tected under the Industrial Property Law. The applica­ tion shall specify the parentage and origin of the plant variety.

Where the proposed denomination does not meet the foregoing requirements, the Secretariat shall refuse it and demand that the applicant propose another within a non­ renewable period of 30 calendar days.

Article 10

The right of priority shall be granted to the applicant for a breeder’s certificate who has previously filed the same application abroad in countries with which Mexico has entered or may yet enter into conventions or treaties on the subject.

The priority shall consist in his being accorded, as the filing date, that on which the filing took place in another country, provided that no more than 12 months have elapsed since that time.

Article 11

For the priority referred to in the foregoing Article to be recognized, the following requirements shall be met:

I. the priority must be claimed at the time of ap­ plying for the breeder’s certificate, and the country of origin and filing date of the application in that country must be specified;

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24 PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

II. the application filed in Mexico must not seek the grant of rights additional to those deriving from the application filed abroad;

III. the requirements specified in the relevant inter­ national treaties, this Law and the regulations under it must be fulfilled within three months following the filing of the application.

Article 12

Verification of fulfillment of the requirements speci­ fied in Articles 7 and 9 of this Law shall be the responsi­ bility of the Committee, and shall be based on the provi­ sions of the regulations concerned and relevant Mexican official provisions.

Once all the requirements have been fulfilled, the Sec­ retariat shall issue the breeder’s certificate, which shall recognize and protect the rights referred to in Article 4 of this Law.

Article 13

Where a plant variety has been jointly bred and de­ veloped by two or more natural persons or legal entities, the application shall specify the contribution made by each and shall designate a representative in common.

Where no representative in common is expressly des­ ignated, the one named first in the application shall be considered to be such.

Article 14

Where the requirements of novelty, denomination and the formal requirements for the application have been fulfilled, the Secretariat shall issue within 120 calendar days following the filing of the application a confirmation of filing for the period prior to the grant of the breeder’s certificate.

The holder of the said confirmation shall be presumed to be the breeder of the new plant variety.

Any person who, from the date of issue of the con­ firmation and until such time as the corresponding breeder’s certificate is granted, makes use of or exploits a plant variety or the propagating material thereof without the consent of the person purporting to be the breeder shall be liable for any damages and prejudice thereby caused to the latter. The breeder may bring action seeking

compensation for such damages and prejudice as from the commencement of the validity of his certificate.

Article 15

Throughout the term of validity of the breeder’s cer­ tificate, the Secretariat shall be authorized to compare the relevant characteristics of the plant variety with the cor­ responding relevant characteristics taken into account at the time of the grant of the certificate. To that end the breeder shall be under the obligation to supply such propagating material and information as the Secretariat may request, and also to allow the conduct of inspection tours.

For the purposes of the foregoing, the Secretariat may seek the intervention of the Committee where necessary.

Article 16

In order to maintain the validity of the breeder’s cer­ tificate, the breeder or where appropriate his successor in title shall pay the fees specified in the Federal Law on Fees.

Article 17

The record of filing and the breeder’s certificate shall become void when their period of validity expires. The record shall lapse where the party concerned fails to col­ lect it within the 12 months from the date on which its issue is notified to him.

Article 18

On the issue of the breeder’s certificate, the denomi­ nation shall become definite and unchangeable, even where the term of the certificate expires and the plant variety becomes public property.

Any person who uses or exploits the plant variety for whatever purpose shall be obliged to use and respect the approved denomination.

When used together with a trademark, trade name or other designation, the approved denomination shall be readily recognizable and distinguishable as an indication of the parentage and origin of the variety.

CHAPTER III

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25PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

TRANSFER OF RIGHTS

Article 19

The rights conferred by the breeder’s certificate, with the exception of the right referred to in subparagraph I of Article 4 of this Law, may be encumbered and transferred either wholly or in part, by means of any legal instrument executed before a public official authorized to attest documents.

Article 20

In the case of the transfer of the rights referred to in subparagraph II of Article 4 of this Law, the beneficiary or assignee of, or the successor in title to, the said rights shall be obliged to submit to the Secretariat:

I. his name, nationality and address;

II. a copy of the document evidencing the transfer of the rights, including all the obligations and rights de­ riving from the said transfer;

III. a document by which the party in question as­ sumes the obligation to maintain the relevant charac­ teristics of the plant variety or the propagating mate­ rial thereof in the event of its being marketed and ex­ ploited.

Article 21

In the case of total transfer, the beneficiary, assignee or successor in title shall assume all the obligations and rights deriving from the breeder’s certificate, with the exception of the right referred to in subparagraph I of Article 4 of this Law.

Article 22

Transfers of rights shall not preclude the possibility of the said rights being licensed to others or their being exploited by the breeder himself, in the absence of provi­ sions to the contrary.

Transfers of rights shall qualify for registration where the requirements specified in Article 20 of this Law are complied with.

Article 23

The beneficiary, assignee or successor in title may institute legal proceedings to protect the breeder’s rights as if he were the owner thereof, unless otherwise agreed.

Article 24

The person who receives labeled material, whether of a plant variety or of propagating material thereof, which clearly shows and specifies the restrictions on its use shall be responsible for any use or exploitation thereof that it is different from that specified on the label.

CHAPTER IV

LICENSING IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST

Article 25

For the purposes of this Law, it shall be understood that there are circumstances affecting the public interest when the exploitation of a plant variety is considered essential to meet the basic needs of the sector of the population and when there is a deficiency in supply or stocks.

Where the plant variety has not been exploited within a period of three years calculated from the date of issue of the breeder’s certificate, the procedure adopted shall be as if there were a situation affecting the public interest.

Article 26

In a situation affecting the public interest, the Secre­ tariat shall proceed as follows:

I. it shall inform the owner of the plant variety or persons authorized by him of the situation affecting the public interest and of the need to have supplies of the plant variety in sufficient quantity, as determined by the Secretariat, to resolve the emergency; where the persons concerned show an interest in resolving the emergency themselves, they shall undertake to do so in the manner laid down by the Secretariat;

II. where the owner of the plant variety or his suc­ cessors in title make it known that they have no means of or interest in resolving the emergency, the Secretariat shall make a public call for offers by third parties who have an interest in doing so;

III. the right to resolve the emergency shall be granted by means of a fixed-term license, subject to

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26 PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

fulfillment of the conditions specified by the Secre­ tariat in the call for offers, which shall include pay­ ment of compensation by the licensee to the owner of the plant variety or his successor in title; when the period for which the license in the public interest ex­ pires, the owner of the plant variety shall recover all his rights.

Article 27

The owner of the plant variety that has been licensed in the public interest shall be under the obligation to pro­ vide the licensee with propagating material thereof. In no event may the licensee make use of the variety or of the propagating material for a purpose other than that of resolving the emergency.

Article 28

In situations where, owing to the seriousness and scale of the emergency, one licensee cannot resolve it alone, the Secretariat may extend the license to two or more licensees to do what is necessary, at the same time, to resolve it.

TITLE III

PLANT VARIETY CERTIFICATION COMMITTEE

SOLE CHAPTER

Article 29

The Committee shall be composed of the following titular members:

I. the Chairman, the Technical Secretary and three ordinary members, designated by the Secretariat;

II. one representative of the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property;

III. one representative of the Secretariat of the Envi­ ronment, Natural Resources and Fisheries;

IV. one representative of the Government Agricul­ tural Research Institutes.

The Committee shall have a records secretary, desig­ nated by the Chairman, who shall have the right to speak

but not to vote. An alternate shall be designated for each titular member.

The position of titular or alternate member of the Committee shall be strictly personal, and may not be assumed by representatives.

Article 30

The functions of the Committee shall be the follow­ ing:

I. to decide on the acceptability of applications for breeders’ certificates, and to rule on the registration thereof;

II. to lay down the procedures for the conduct and evaluation of technical field trials or laboratory tests;

III. to give its opinion on the formulation of official Mexican provisions on the characterization and evaluation of plant varieties for description purposes;

IV. any other functions that may be specified in the regulations under this Law.

Article 31

The Committee shall meet at least four times a year or, where it has two or more subjects to consider, for as many sessions as the Chairman may convene. Decisions shall be taken by a majority vote of two-thirds of the members present.

Article 32

The Committee may, to assist it in its functions, set up technical support groups composed of experts on each genus or species. The producers of each genus or species may appoint an expert to represent them within such support groups, in accordance with the applicable regula­ tions.

TITLE IV

NATIONAL REGISTER OF PLANT VARIETIES

SOLE CHAPTER

Article 33

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27PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

The Secretariat shall establish a Register, which shall be public and in which at least the following shall be en­ tered:

I. the application for the issue of a breeder’s certifi­ cate;

II. the record of filing;

III. the breeder’s certificate, with details of:

(a) the plant variety protected;

(b) the species to which it belongs;

(c) its common or everyday name and its scien­ tific name, and any approved change thereto;

(d) the name and address of the owner or own­ ers of the plant variety and their successors in title, and also the name, address and per­ sonal particulars of their legal representa­ tive, if any;

(e) the period of validity and other details of the breeder’s certificate issued;

IV. the waiver of the rights provided for in subpara­ graph II of Article 4 of this Law;

V. any transfers and encumbrances to which the rights provided for in subparagraph II of Article 4 of this Law may be made subject;

VI. the grant of licenses in the public interest re­ ferred to in this Law;

VII. the end of the validity of the record of filing or of the breeder’s certificate due to either lapse or ex­ piry of the period concerned, and also precautionary entries in connection with proceedings for the invali­ dation and revocation of a breeder’s certificate, in­ cluding the final ruling thereon;

VIII. the declaration stating that the plant varieties have become public property.

Article 34

Cancellation of an entry in the Register may be or­ dered in any of the following cases:

I. in connection with transfers of rights, where can­ cellation is requested jointly by the breeder and by

the person to whom the rights concerned have been transferred;

II. in the case of invalidation, lapse or revocation;

III. by court order;

IV. in such other cases as may be provided for in this Law and other legal enactments.

Article 35

In order to be enforceable against third parties, both breeders’ certificates and transfers of rights shall be en­ tered in the Register.

Article 36

The Secretariat shall guarantee access to the informa­ tion contained in Register entries.

Article 37

The Secretariat shall publish Register entries, applica­ tions for breeders’ certificates and any information con­ sidered relevant to the subject of this Law in the Official Gazette of the Federation and in such other media as it considers appropriate.

TITLE V

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES

SOLE CHAPTER

Article 38

The administrative procedures for a declaration of nullity, revocation and the imposition of sanctions laid down in this Law shall be prosecuted and settled accord­ ing to this Law and, in the absence of relevant provisions therein, according to the Federal Law on Administrative Procedure.

Article 39

If it is proved that the requirements laid down in Ar­ ticle 7 of this Law have not been complied with at the time of the grant of the breeder’s certificate, the Secretar­ iat shall, provided the grounds for its decision are estab­ lished in the appropriate proceedings, declare the said certificate null and void.

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28 PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

Any person may bring to the notice of the Secretariat the existence of facts or circumstances that might give rise to the nullity of a breeder’s certificate.

Article 40

The Secretariat may, provided the grounds for its decision are established in the appropriate proceedings, revoke a breeder’s certificate at any time in any of the following circumstances:

I. where the fees referred to in Article 16 of this Law have not been paid for two years;

II. where it is shown that the relevant characteristics of the plant variety have changed;

III. where the holder fails, after six months have elapsed from the date on which he was called upon to do so, to deliver to the Secretariat propagating mate­ rial of the plant variety to allow it to be grown with its relevant characteristics as defined at the time of the grant of the breeder’s certificate;

IV. where it is proved that the plant variety has ceased to meet the requirements specified in subpara­ graphs III and IV of Article 7 of this Law.

Article 41

In administrative proceedings for a declaration of nullity or revocation or the imposition of sanctions, the other party or the person liable to be prejudiced shall be informed so that, within a period of 30 working days following the notification, he may make in writing what­ ever statement serves his interests.

Article 42

In administrative procedures for the imposition of sanctions for the infringements provided for in this Law, the Secretariat may in addition do the following as precau­ tionary measures:

I. order the withdrawal from circulation, or prohibit the circulation, of plant varieties or propagating mate­ rial that infringes the rights protected by this Law;

II. order the withdrawal from circulation of objects, crates, containers, packages, paperwork and adver­ tising or similar material that infringes any of the rights protected by this Law;

III. seize any property affected by a violation of the rights protected by this Law;

IV. order the alleged infringer to suspend or stop any acts that violate the provisions of this Law.

Where any of the above measures has been applied, the aggrieved party and the other parties concerned shall be informed, and that fact shall be specified in the record that is drawn up for the purpose.

Where the plant variety or its propagating material is being traded, traders shall be under the obligation to ab­ stain from disposing of it as from the date on which the decision on the above measures is notified to them.

Producers, nurserymen, manufacturers, importers and distributors shall be under the same obligation, and shall be responsible for immediately recovering the plant varie­ ties or propagating material already being traded.

Article 43

The Secretariat may order the precautionary measures referred to in the foregoing Article on application by the interested party. To that end the applicant shall prove the existence of a violation of his rights, or the imminence of such a violation, or the possibility of irreparable harm being done, or a substantiated fear that evidence may be destroyed, concealed, lost or altered, in addition to which he must effect payment of security, provide any informa­ tion that may be requested of him and meet such other requirements as may be laid down in legal provisions.

The party against whom the precautionary measure has been instituted may, in order to have it lifted, deposit counter-security to cover the damages and prejudice that might be caused the party applying for the measure.

Article 44

The party applying for the precautionary measures referred to in Article 42 of this Law shall be responsible for the payment of damages and prejudice caused to the party against whom they were carried out when:

I. the final ruling on the merits of the dispute which has been confirmed finds that there has been no viola­ tion or threat of violation of the rights of the party who applied for the measure;

II. a precautionary measure has been applied for but the administrative procedure before the Secretariat on the merits of the dispute has not been initiated within

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29PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

a period of 20 days, calculated from the implementa­ tion of the measure.

Article 45

The fate of property seized, and also all matters con­ cerning the grant and provision of security and counter- security, shall conform to the provisions in the regula­ tions under this Law.

Article 46

Where the Secretariat acts as arbitrator, an Arbitration Board shall be formed and presided over by the head of the General Legal Department of the said Secretariat.

Article 47

The Arbitration Board shall act as an amicable broker or alternatively as an arbitrator according to the strict terms of the law, as agreed by the parties. It shall settle matters in accordance with the provisions of this Law and the regulations under it.

TITLE VI

INFRINGEMENTS

SOLE CHAPTER

Article 48

The Secretariat shall impose the following fines, in accordance with the Federal Law on Administrative Pro­ cedure, for the infringements specified:

I. alteration of the denomination of a protected plant variety without authorization from the Secre­ tariat: 200 to 2,000 times the minimum daily wage; II. improper claim to be the owner of a protected plant variety: 500 to 3,000 times the minimum daily wage;

III. disclosure or marketing of a plant variety as be­ ing of foreign origin when it is not, or disclosure or marketing of a plant variety as being of national origin when it is not: 300 to 3,000 times the minimum daily wage;

IV. opposition to inspection tours to be conducted in accordance with this Law and the Federal Law on

Administrative Procedure: 300 to 3,000 times the minimum daily wage;

V. commercial exploitation of the characteristics or content of a protected plant variety by attribution of the same to another plant variety that is not pro­ tected: 1,000 to 10,000 times the minimum daily wage;

VI. failure to comply with, or violation of, the measures provided for in Article 42 of this Law: 1,000 to 10,000 times the minimum daily wage;

VII. use or exploitation of a protected plant variety or the propagating material thereof for production, distribution or sale of the same without authorization from the owner: 2,000 to 10,000 times the minimum daily wage;

VIII. other violations of the provisions of this Law and the regulations under it: 200 to 5,000 times the minimum daily wage.

For the above purposes, reference shall be had to the minimum general daily wage payable in the Federal Dis­ trict on the date of the infringement.

For the imposition of sanctions, the Secretariat shall have regard to the seriousness of the infringement and also the background, personal circumstances and socio­ economic status of the infringer. In the event of repeti­ tion of the offense, the fine applicable shall be up to twice the maximum amount of the relevant sanction.

TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

First

This Law shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Gazette of the Fed­ eration.

Second

Until such time as the Federal Executive issues the Regulations under this Law, the relevant administrative and regulatory provisions of the Industrial Property Law shall apply subsidiarily in so far as they are not contrary to this Law.

Third

Article 12 of the Law on Seed Production, Certifica­ tion and Marketing, the fifth transitional article of the

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30 PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION No. 82

Decree reforming, adding to and derogating from various provisions of the Law on the Development and Protec­ tion of Industrial Property, published in the Official Ga­ zette of the Federation on August 2, 1994, and any other administrative provisions contrary to this Law, are re­ pealed.

Fourth

Those plant varieties that have been entered in the National Register of Plant Varieties referred to in the Law on n Seed Production, Certification and Marketing shall be eligible for the grant of breeders’ certificates, subject to compliance with the conditions laid down in this Law. The term of protection of the rights shall conform to the provisions of Article 4 of this Law, the reference date being that on which the entry number in the National Register of Plant Varieties was assigned to it. The rights acquired by virtue of the assignment of the said number shall be respected in full.

Fifth

The Mexican Institute of Industrial Property shall hand over to the Secretariat within six months of the en­ try into force of this Law all applications from breeders of plant varieties of all genera and species filed with it prior to the said entry into force, in accordance with the provisions of the fifth transitional article of the Decree reforming, adding to and derogating from various provi­ sions of the Law on Development and Protection of In­ dustrial Property, published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on August 2, 1994.

With respect to applications for patents for the pro­ tection of plant varieties currently pending under the Law on the Development and Protection of Industrial Prop­ erty, the applicants may avail themselves of the benefits afforded by this Law within six months following the entry into force thereof, by means of a request filed in writing with the Secretariat for Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development. Rights acquired by virtue of such patents as may have been granted shall be respected in full.

Sixth

The Secretariat shall recognize the right of priority referred to in Article 10 of this Law in respect of applica­ tions for the protection of the breeders’ rights in plant varieties filed in other countries as from the entry into force of this Law.

Mexico City, October 3, 1996. Deputy Carlos Hum­ berto Aceves del Olmo, President. Senator Melchor de los Santos Ordoñez, President, Deputy Sabino González Alba, Secretary. Senator Eduardo Andrade Sánchez, Sec­ retary.- Signatures.

In accordance with the provisions of subparagraph I of Article 89 of the Constitution of the United Mexican States, and with a view to the due publication and obser­ vance thereof, I promulgate this Decree in the Residence of the Federal Executive Power, Mexico City, Federal District, on this twenty-first day of October, nineteen ninety-six. Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de León.- Signature. Government Secretary, Emilio Chuayffet Chemor.­ Signature.

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