Legislative Implementation of Flexibilities - Slovakia
| Title: | Article 27 of the Act No. 435/2001 Coll. on Patents, Supplementary Protection Certificates and on Amendment of Some Acts as Amended by Act No. 402/2002 Coll., Act No. 84/2007 Coll. and Act No. 517/2007 Coll. |
| Field of IP: | Patents |
| Type of flexibility: | Compulsory licenses and government use |
| Summary table: |  |
Provisions of Law
Compulsory licence
Article 27
(1) On request the court shall be entitled to grant a compulsory licence to any person who can prove the capability to exploit an invention, which is a subject-matter of a granted patent, within the territory of the Slovak Republic, provided that
a) 4 years have expired since filing of an application or 3 years have expired from granting a patent, where the time limit, which expires later, shall apply,
b) person requesting granting of a compulsory licence has offered before filing a request to a patent owner a proper conclusion of a licence agreement, whilst this offer was not accepted by a patent owner within three months from its filing, and
c) invention has not been exploited within the territory of the Slovak Republic without an appropriate reason by a patent owner, or it has been exploited insufficiently, while a
subject-matter of a patented invention as a product has not been supplied to the market of
the Slovak Republic in a sufficient quantity. Non-existence of an appropriate reason shall
be presupposed, unless proved otherwise.
(2) Compulsory licence may be granted only as a non-exclusive licence, whilst its duration and scope shall be limited to purpose for which it has been granted provided that domestic market needs shall be satisfied preferentially.
(3) If a subject-matter of a patent is a technology of semiconductor products, compulsory licence may be granted only for public non-commercial exploitation or to prevent a patent owner from further action, which pursuant to a decision of a competent body can be considered as an action abusing or restricting economic competition, or in case of serious public interest menace.
(4) Notwithstanding paragraph 1(a) and (b) compulsory licence may be granted in case of serious public interest menace.
(5) Notwithstanding presuppositions pursuant to paragraph 1 and conditions pursuant to paragraph 2, a court shall be entitled to grant a compulsory non-exclusive licence for utilisation of a biotechnological invention on request, if a cultivator shall not be able to exploit or acquire right to a plant variety without infringing earlier right to a patent, if the plaintiff proves that
a) before filing a request he has offered to a patent owner a proper conclusion of a licence agreement, whilst this offer was not been accepted by a patent owner within three months from its filing , and
b) plant variety represents an important technical progress of a considerable economic importance comparable with an invention which is a subject-matter of a request for granting a compulsory licence.
(6) In case of granting a compulsory licence pursuant to paragraph 5, a patent owner shall
have right for granting a cross compulsory licence for utilisation of a plant variety pursuant to a special regulation.
(7) If a patent owner has granted a compulsory licence for utilisation of a plant variety pursuant to a special regulation, 13b) an owner of a cultivator certificate shall have right for granting a cross compulsory licence for utilisation of a biotechnological invention.
(8) Assignment or transfer of right of a compulsory licence holder shall be possible exclusively as a part of an assignment or transfer of a company or of its part , within which an invention is being used on a basis of a compulsory licence.
(9) A holder of a compulsory licence shall be entitled to waive rights from a compulsory licence by a written notice delivered to the Office. Waiver of right shall come into effect from the day of delivery of a notice to the Office or on a later day which is stated in a notice as a day from which a compulsory licence rights holder waives his rights.