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Patents Act 2004

Summary

3.This Act amends the Patents Act 1977 (“the 1977 Act”), which is the statute governing the patents system in the UK. The purpose of the Act is three-fold. Firstly, it is intended to bring the UK patents system into line with the revised European Patent Convention which was agreed by Diplomatic Conference in November 2000. Secondly, it introduces into the 1977 Act some measures designed to assist in the enforcement of patent rights and in the resolution of patent disputes between patent proprietors and third parties. Thirdly, it updates the 1977 Act.

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Explanatory Notes

Text created by the government department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Public Acts except Appropriation, Consolidated Fund, Finance and Consolidation Acts.

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