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Patent Law Treaty is Finalized

Geneva, June 1, 2000
Press Releases PR/2000/222

Member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on Thursday adopted by consensus an international treaty that will simplify and streamline procedures for obtaining and maintaining a patent. The Patent Law Treaty (PLT), which opens for signature on June 2, 2000, will enter into force once it has been ratified by ten countries.

The PLT was finalized at a Diplomatic Conference that brought together high-level representatives from some 150 states and met from May 11 to June 2, 2000. The treaty is the culmination of 5 years of negotiations and is a major step towards further harmonization of patent law. The PLT promises to reduce the cost of patent protection and to make the process more user friendly and widely accessible.

WIPO Director General Dr. Kamil Idris welcomed the adoption of the PLT and applauded delegates for the positive spirit of cooperation and compromise that had prevailed during negotiations. "Successful completion of the PLT is a major step in the broader process of reducing patent costs around the world," said Dr. Idris. "The next step is to work towards harmonization of legal substance, and eventually towards a single global standard of protection," he added.

The Director General pointed out that ultimately the biggest savings in patent-related costs will come about when intellectual property offices around the world are able to share results of search and examination procedures. In past sessions of the Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP), and at the September 1999 session of the WIPO Assemblies, a significant number of delegations expressed their wish to take up the question of further harmonization of patent laws upon conclusion of the PLT. This is reflected in the WIPO Program and Budget for the 2000-2001 biennium. The SCP will hold its next meeting in November 2000.

Once it enters into force, the PLT will harmonize and streamline, on a worldwide basis, formal patent procedures relating to national and regional patent applications and maintenance of patents. Inventors seeking patent protection must as a first step meet certain formality requirements in order to avoid rejection of their application and a consequent loss of rights. These formalities currently vary from one country to another. In standardizing them, the PLT offers both inventors and national and regional patent offices a number of advantages:

  • use of standardized forms and simplified procedures that reduce the risk of error
  • cost reductions for inventors, applicants and patent attorneys
  • elimination of cumbersome and complicated procedures
  • improved efficiency of patent offices and lower operating costs
  • possibility to introduce electronic filing of patent applications and related communications
  • reliance on a predictable maximum set of patent formalities in all countries party to the PLT (including the incorporation of provisions under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (the WIPO-administered international patent application system) regarding form or contents of an international application), resulting in easier access to foreign patent systems;
  • Exceptions from mandatory representation
  • Enhanced legal certainty for applicants filing in their home country and abroad
  • Relief and re-instatement of rights in case of missing certain time limits
  • Possibility to obtain a filing date, even if the main part of the application (description) is filed in a foreign language

The PLT achieves a major goal of international simplification by incorporating the requirements for PCT international applications into national and regional laws. Thus, under the PLT, the requirements and procedures for national and regional patent applications, and those for PCT international applications, will be harmonized. This will eventually lead to standardized formal requirements and streamlined procedures for all patent applications worldwide.

For further details, please refer to press releases 219 and 220 or contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section:

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