New Zealand Legislation: Acts
Acts are laws made by Parliament
(1) Subject to the provisions of section 19 of this Act, the complete specification filed in pursuance of an application for a patent may be accepted by the Commissioner at any time after the applicant has complied with the requirements mentioned in subsection (1) of that section, and if not so accepted within the period allowed under that section for compliance with those requirements, shall be accepted as soon as may be thereafter:
Provided that the applicant may give notice to the Commissioner requesting him to postpone acceptance until such date, not being later than 18 months from the date of filing of the complete specification, as may be specified in the notice; and if such notice is given and, where the notice requests a postponement to a date later than 15 months from the date aforesaid, the prescribed fee is paid, the Commissioner may postpone acceptance accordingly.
(2) On the acceptance of a complete specification the Commissioner shall give notice to the applicant, and shall advertise in the Journal the fact that the specification has been accepted, and thereupon the application and the specification or specifications filed in pursuance thereof shall be open to public inspection.
(3) Any reference in this Act to the date of the publication of a complete specification shall be construed as a reference to the date of issue of the Journal containing the advertisement as aforesaid.
(4) After the date of the publication of a complete specification and until the sealing of a patent in respect thereof, the applicant shall have the like privileges and rights as if a patent for the invention had been sealed on the date of the publication of the complete specification, except that the applicant shall not be entitled to institute any proceedings for infringement until the patent has been sealed.
(5) Notwithstanding anything in the Limitation Act 1950, where it is alleged that an infringement has occurred in the period commencing with the date of the publication of the complete specification and ending with the date on which the patent is sealed, the period of limitation for taking an action in respect of that infringement shall be—
(a) Six years from the date of the alleged infringement; or
(b) Three years from the date of the sealing of the patent,—
whichever is the later.
Compare: Patents Act 1949, s 13 (UK); 1921-22 No 18 ss 11, 12; 1946 No 32 s 5
Subsection (4) was substituted, and subsection (5) was inserted, as from 2 September 1996, by section 3 Patents Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 139).