UK Patents
The Process Explained

Protection for Technical Innovation
Patents for invention protect technical innovation and allow a patent proprietor to take legal action against infringers committing acts that fall within the patent claims. The claims, usually present at the end of the specification, define the legal scope of the patent. These are supported by a detailed description of one or more working examples that embody the invention as claimed.

The Patenting Process
The patenting process is usually started by filing a first application which initiates a twelve-month period under the Paris Convention, during which applications may be filed elsewhere claiming the benefit of the original filing date. The original filing may include a detailed fully worked specification that requires minimal amendment prior to the convention filings being made. Alternatively, a relatively scant specification may initiate the process, such a document usually being referred to as a provisional specification.

During the development of an invention, it is possible for several provisional applications to be filed within the twelve-month convention term which are all used for a priority basis in substantive applications filed thereafter.

Patent Protection in the UK
Protection in the United Kingdom is obtained in accordance with the Patents Act 1977 which provides for a patent application to be filed at the British Patent Office, searched, published (as a pending application), examined and then granted.

An alternative route to obtaining patent protection in the United Kingdom is via the European patent system. Under this, a single application is filed at the European Patent Office and prosecuted in a similar manner to that of a British application. The European application may designate one or more European countries and in so doing it is possible for the patent to be validated in those countries after obtaining acceptance. This usually involves identifying a local address for service and filing a complete translation of the specification into the local language. Enforcement is then conducted at the national level.

A further approach is that provided by the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) allowing an international application to be filed. The international procedure is similar to the first stages of the European procedure in that the application is searched and published. International applications usually make one or more priority claims and the international phase usually continues for a period of thirty months from the earliest priority date. Thereafter, it is necessary to convert the international application into a collection of national applications, which then take account of the search results of the international phase and any amendments that have been filed during the international phase. It is also possible for the European Patent Office to be designated in an international application, resulting in regional phase processing out of the PCT before the European Patent Office and then ultimately national phase validation in order to obtain an enforceable patent in the United Kingdom.

Patent Duration
Patent systems throughout the world have undergone a significant degree of harmonisation, and therefore the basic rules in terms of patentability and many of the procedures conducted during prosecution tend to be substantially similar. In most countries, the duration of a patent is a maximum of twenty years from the filing date. It should also be noted that in most countries fees are required in order to maintain the patent in force, usually on an annual basis.