About Intellectual Property IP Training IP Outreach IP for… IP and... IP in... Patent & Technology Information Trademark Information Industrial Design Information Geographical Indication Information Plant Variety Information (UPOV) IP Laws, Treaties & Judgements IP Resources IP Reports Patent Protection Trademark Protection Industrial Design Protection Geographical Indication Protection Plant Variety Protection (UPOV) IP Dispute Resolution IP Office Business Solutions Paying for IP Services Negotiation & Decision-Making Development Cooperation Innovation Support Public-Private Partnerships The Organization Working with WIPO Accountability Patents Trademarks Industrial Designs Geographical Indications Copyright Trade Secrets WIPO Academy Workshops & Seminars World IP Day WIPO Magazine Raising Awareness Case Studies & Success Stories IP News WIPO Awards Business Universities Indigenous Peoples Judiciaries Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions Economics Gender Equality Global Health Climate Change Competition Policy Sustainable Development Goals Enforcement Frontier Technologies Mobile Applications Sports Tourism PATENTSCOPE Patent Analytics International Patent Classification ARDI – Research for Innovation ASPI – Specialized Patent Information Global Brand Database Madrid Monitor Article 6ter Express Database Nice Classification Vienna Classification Global Design Database International Designs Bulletin Hague Express Database Locarno Classification Lisbon Express Database Global Brand Database for GIs PLUTO Plant Variety Database GENIE Database WIPO-Administered Treaties WIPO Lex - IP Laws, Treaties & Judgments WIPO Standards IP Statistics WIPO Pearl (Terminology) WIPO Publications Country IP Profiles WIPO Knowledge Center WIPO Technology Trends Global Innovation Index World Intellectual Property Report PCT – The International Patent System ePCT Budapest – The International Microorganism Deposit System Madrid – The International Trademark System eMadrid Article 6ter (armorial bearings, flags, state emblems) Hague – The International Design System eHague Lisbon – The International System of Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications eLisbon UPOV PRISMA Mediation Arbitration Expert Determination Domain Name Disputes Centralized Access to Search and Examination (CASE) Digital Access Service (DAS) WIPO Pay Current Account at WIPO WIPO Assemblies Standing Committees Calendar of Meetings WIPO Official Documents Development Agenda Technical Assistance IP Training Institutions COVID-19 Support National IP Strategies Policy & Legislative Advice Cooperation Hub Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISC) Technology Transfer Inventor Assistance Program WIPO GREEN WIPO's Pat-INFORMED Accessible Books Consortium WIPO for Creators WIPO ALERT Member States Observers Director General Activities by Unit External Offices Job Vacancies Procurement Results & Budget Financial Reporting Oversight

Legislative Implementation of Flexibilities - Estonia

Title:Sections 5-7 of the Utility Model Act of 16/03/1994 (consolidated version of 09/02/2000)
Field of IP:Patents
Type of flexibility:Utility models
Summary table:PDF

Provisions of Law

§ 5.-(1) Utility models are inventions which are new, which involve an inventive step and which are susceptible of industrial application.

(2) The following shall not be regarded as inventions:

1. industrial designs;

2. layout-designs of integrated circuits;

3. discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods;

4. schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts or doing business;

5. design documentation for and plans of constructions, buildings or areas;

6. symbols;

7. algorithms for computers and computer programs;

8. presentations of information;

9. human bodies or parts thereof;

10. plant or animal varieties.

(3) An invention is granted legal protection upon registration in the state register of utility models (hereinafter register).

(4) The scope of legal protection of a utility model is determined by the terms of the claims of the utility model.

(5) Equipment, processes and materials can be protected as utility models.

(09.02.2000 entered into force 01.07.2000-RT I 2000, 19, 117)

Inventions not Protected as Utility Models

§ 6.-(1) The following shall not be protected as utility models:

1. inventions which are contrary to public order and morality;

2. methods of treatment and diagnostic methods practised on the human or animal body;

3. biotechnological inventions.

(2) For the purposes of this Act, "biotechnological inventions" specified in clause (1) 3) of this section mean:

1. inventions concerning biological materials or products which contain such materials;

2. inventions concerning the derivation or use of biological materials.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, "biological material" specified in subsection (2) of this section means any material, including micro-organisms, which contains genetic information and is capable of reproducing itself or being reproduced in a biological system.

(09.02.2000 entered into force 01.07.2000-RT I 2000, 19, 117)

Novelty, Inventive Step and Industrial Application

§ 7.-(1) An invention shall be considered to be new if it does not form part of the state of the art. The state of the art shall be held to comprise everything made available to the public by means of written or oral description, by use, or in any other way, before the filing date of the registration application of a utility model (hereinafter registration application) or before the date of priority if priority is claimed. In determining novelty, the content of registration applications published pursuant to § 33 of this Act and of patent applications published pursuant to § 24 of the Patents Act (RT I 1994, 25, 406; 1998, 74, 1227; 107, 1768; 1999, 84, 764) prior to the filing date of the registration application or the date of priority, if priority is claimed, shall also be taken into consideration if the filing dates or, if priority is claimed, the dates of priority of such applications are earlier.

(2) In determining the state of the art, no such information is taken into consideration which is disclosed within twelve months before the filing date of a registration application or, if priority is claimed, before the date of priority, by a person who is entitled to the registration of a utility model pursuant to § 11 of this Act, or by any other person who has received the information from such person against or according to the will of the person.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, an invention shall be considered as involving an inventive step if, having regard to the state of the art, it is not obvious.

(4) A utility model shall be considered as susceptible to industrial application if it can be manufactured or used in economy.

(09.02.2000 entered into force 01.07.2000-RT I 2000, 19, 117)

https://www3.wipo.int/contact/en/area.jsp?area=development_agenda https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/ https://www.wipo.int/tools/en/disclaim.html https://www.wipo.int/en/web/privacy-policy/ https://www.wipo.int/en/web/accessibility/ https://www.wipo.int/tools/en/sitemap.html https://www3.wipo.int/newsletters/en/ https://www.wipo.int/en/web/podcasts/ https://www.wipo.int/news/en/