About
Patents
We are an experts about Patents, so below we want to share with you some information that can help you to know more about it.
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Q&A ABOUT PATENTS
Invention Patent
A natural person who makes an invention or utility model or creates an industrial design, or his successor in title, shall have the exclusive and temporary right to exploit said invention, utility model or industrial design for their benefit, either themselves or through third parties with their consent.
Who owns a patent?
A patent application and any patent is owned by the inventor(s) who development the claimed invention; however, if the inventor is subject to an employment contract he (they) must be aware that the invention shall correspond to the employer and the person or persons who made it, and they shall be entitled in equal circumstances to the exclusive use or acquisition of the invention and the corresponding patent(s).
How long does a patent last?
The patent shall have a non-renewable term of 20 years, starting from the recognized Mexican filing date.
How long does it take for a patent to be approved or refused?
On average, it takes four years for a patent is ranted o refused. The time depends on the number of offices actions issued by IMPI and the applicant’s response time to each one.
The following timeline shows the steps that are followed in the processing of a patent.
patentprosecutionmexico
How to speed up patent applications?
- First option:
As you can see from the above timeline diagram, the publication of a pending patent application shall take place as soon as possible following the expiration of the 18-month period from the filing date. This time can be reduced requesting an earlier publication so that once the patent application has been published the Mexican patent Office (IMPI) conducts the substantive examination of the invention. - Second option:
IMPI may accept or request the findings from substantive examinations or the equivalent thereof conducted by foreign patent offices or, where appropriate, a plain copy of the patent granted by any of said foreign offices. This document can be filed before or during the substantive examination. Take care that the subject matter granted by a foreign office is patentable in Mexico. - Third option:
Filing a request for PPH program. (See below)
Is there an accelerated examination patent program?
The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is a process for reviewing a patent application document that has been filed in another country and has been granted as a patent or considered to have novelty and/or inventive step and/or industrial applicability and accepted as valid by a counterpart patent office due to a bilateral agreement between them.
The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is implemented based on a bilateral agreement between two Offices and allows one Office to accelerate examination, at the applicant’s request, if a corresponding application has been found allowable/patentable by the counterpart Office. The PPH is expected to increase a grant rate and reduce filing costs.
The process allows reducing the processing time of a patent; however, there is necessary to comply with certain conditions. It is suggested to advise an engineer-patent attorney to avoid inconvenience in the application of this procedure. It is recommendable to seek advice from an expert, preferably a Patent Attorney (Engineer-Lawyer) before request the PPH program.
What to do if my patent application was rejected?
If your patent application was rejected and you do not agree, there are two options to challenge the rejection.
- First option:
To file a review recourse before the same authority (IMPI). This option is recommendable when the rejection was based on formal requirements. - Second option:
The applicant can bring a nullity trial before the Federal Administrative Justice Court. If the nullity trial is favorable to the applicant the Federal Administrative Justice Court will order IMPI to re-examine the rejected subject matter.In order to try to avoid a rejection of the invention it is recommendable to seek advice from an expert, preferably a Patent Attorney (Engineer-Lawyer).
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What is the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)?
The PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) is an international treaty signed by more than 150 Contracting States wherein the protection for an invention is simultaneously requested instead of filing several separate national patent applications. As at this time no worldwide patent exists the granting of patents remains under the control of the national patent Offices in what is called the “national phase”.
Is there a Worldwide Patent?
There is no worldwide patent because each country has its own patent system and rules establishing what are patentable or not patentable.
What can’t be patented in Mexico?
Novel inventions resulting from an inventive step and subject to industrial applicability are patentable with the exception of the following subject matter:
I.- Mexican patents shall not be granted in respect of Inventions which would be contrary to public order or morality, particularly:
a) Methods of human cloning and their products;
b) Processes for modifying the germline genetic identity of human beings and their products when they involve the possibility of developing a human being;
c) Uses of human embryos for industrial or commercial purposes; or
d) Processes for modifying the genetic identity of animals which are likely to cause them suffering without any substantial medical or veterinary benefit to man or animal, and also animals resulting from such processes;
II.- Plant and animal varieties, except in case of microorganism;
III.- Plant or animal varieties or essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals and product thereof; this provision shall not apply to microbiological processes or any other technical process or the products thereof;
IV.- Methods for treatment of the human or animal body by surgery or therapy and diagnostic methods practiced on the human or animal body; and
V.- The human body, at the various stages of its formation and development, and the simple discovery of one of its elements including the total sequence or partial sequence of a gene.
A biological element isolated from its nature environment and produced by means of a technical process, may constitute a patentable invention, even though it has previously existed in nature.
The industrial application of a total sequence or a partial sequence of a nucleic acid or protein must be expressly disclosed in the patent application.
Furthermore, the following shall not be considered as an invention:
I. Discoveries, theoretical or scientific principles;
II.- Mathematical methods;
III.- Aesthetic creations and artistic or literary works;
IV.- Diagrams, plans, rules, and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business;
V.- computer programs;
VI.- a presentation of information;
VII.- Biological and genetic material as already existed in nature; and
VIII.- Juxtaposition of known inventions or mixtures of know products, except where in reality they are so combined or merged so that they cannot function separately or where their particular features or functions have been so modified as to produce an industrial result or their use is not obvious to a person skilled in the art.
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