As explained earlier on this Blog here, major changes are afoot in the Swiss patent system.
The Federal Council has published the draft bill earlier today; see the press release. While the press release is available in English language, the draft bill and the explanatory notes are not. I have prepared quick and dirty automated translations of the draft bill (EN) and the explanatory notes (EN), though.
The public consultation period runs until 1 February 2021. There is a lot to digest here. I have not done any detailed analysis of the draft bill, but the key elements are clear:
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- Patent applications will be examined on the merits, i.e. re novelty and inventive step.
- Appeals in examination proceedings will be heard by the Federal Administrative Court; judges with technical expertise may be called in.
- Post-grant oppositions will be possible, also on the merits.
- A utility model will be available, unexamined on the merits and with a reduced term (10y).
- The utility model will qualify for the patent box, just as a patent.
A more in-depth analysis will follow.
A marked-up version of the entire PatA has been included below.
Reported by Martin WILMING
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DRAFT BILL
The draft bill is also available in French and Italian.
We have compiled a marked-up version of the entire PatA, to provide appropriate context and to ease understanding:
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EXPLANATORY NOTES
The explanatory notes are also available in French and Italian.
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