Fast tracking at the UK-IPO
The UK-IPO have announced they intend to introduce new 'fast track' procedures for both patent and trade mark applications. Robert Ibrahim of the grandly-titled Intellectual Property & Innovation Directorate, writes:
The intention is to deal with, on request, trade mark applications within 10 business days and patent applications within 9 months.
The IPKat thinks that this all sounds great in principle, but there are often very good reasons for not wanting patent applications to be granted too quickly, section 2(3) being one of them. And isn't the UK office pretty quick anyway nowadays, given that much of their work is being drawn away to Munich (or The Hague) and Alicante?
Merpel wonders why the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys are not being consulted on this one. Was it something they said?
"The Gowers Report on Intellectual Property recommended that the UK Intellectual Property Office provide new accelerated services for processing patent and trade mark applications. We have considered these recommendations and are now consulting on proposed new fast track services for patents and trade marks, both of which will be available to all applicants upon payment of a fee.
The consultation launches today, 21 September and closes on 14 December 2007. The consultation document is available at http://www.ipo.gov.uk/consult-fasttrack.pdf".
The intention is to deal with, on request, trade mark applications within 10 business days and patent applications within 9 months.
The IPKat thinks that this all sounds great in principle, but there are often very good reasons for not wanting patent applications to be granted too quickly, section 2(3) being one of them. And isn't the UK office pretty quick anyway nowadays, given that much of their work is being drawn away to Munich (or The Hague) and Alicante?
Merpel wonders why the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys are not being consulted on this one. Was it something they said?