Patent Law

What is patent: A patent is a property right that gives an inventor the legal ability to stop others
from making, using, or selling an invention for a certain amount of time.
There are three distinct types of patents:
 A utility patent, which is the most common type, protects functional devices. Software
patents fall under this umbrella, but are sometimes regarded as a different type of patent
altogether.
 A design patent covers non-functional, or aesthetic aspects of an item.
 A plant patent protects new varieties of plants.
 Patent Law: What Is It?
Patent law is part of intellectual property law and controls what inventions qualify for patents,
the patent application process, and how patent infringement is handled.
Traditional patents protect tangible scientific inventions, such as circuit boards, car engines, heating coils,
or zippers. However, over time patents have been used to protect a broader variety of inventions such as
coding algorithms, business practices, or genetically modified organisms.

What Are the Requirements for Patentability?

Before an invention can be protected by a utility patent, it must meet the following requirements as
shown in figure:

 Patentable subject matter: It must be involved. The invention must fall into one of
the categories of patentable items that the law defines. Generally, processes, devices,
machines, and anything that can be manufactured are patentable
 Useful: The invention must be useful.
 Novel: The invention must be novel. It needs to have an element of newness to it. No
one else may already hold a patent for the same invention.
 Nonobvious: The invention must be nonobvious. This means that no one with a
basic knowledge of the type of item that was invented would find the invention to be
obvious.
  Enablement: The inventor must be able to describe the invention in such detail that
someone else would be able to make it based on your instructions. This principle is
known as enablement

What Rights Does a Patent Grant?

A patent grants its holder two basic rights: the right to exclude and the right to sue infringers.
The Right to Exclude:
This means that patent holder can stop others from making, using, or selling the invention. If others
wish to use or sell your invention, you can either sell the patent or arrange a patent license
agreement.
The Right to Sue Infringers:
If you sue for infringement, a federal court may grant an injunction, or a strict order, that tells the
guilty party to stop infringing on your patent and you may be awarded damages.

Patent Law: Part of Intellectual Property Law

Patent law falls under intellectual property law, which is otherwise known as IP law. IP law
covers the following as shown in figure:
Why Is Patent Law Important?
Patent law is designed to encourage innovation and protect businesses. Successfully navigating
patent law can give businesses and startups a distinct advantage against competitors who might
otherwise try to steal new inventions.

Trademark Law
 Trademark law is the set of laws and legal regulations that are set up to protect
trademarks.
 A trademark is a legal protection given to any word, name, symbol, or design that
is used in commerce to identify the product of one manufacturer from another.
 For example, the Nike Swoosh is a trademark that distinguishes it from other sports
companies such as Reebok and Adidas. "Coca-Cola" is also a trademark that
distinguishes the soda from other soda companies such as Pepsi.
 All brands are entitled to trademark their brand and logo, as long as that mark isn't
already in use by another company.
 A trademark is also known as a service mark, collective mark, certification mark,
or trade name.

Why Is Trademark Law Important?

Trademark law protects trademarks from dilution and improper use. A trademark can be
massively important to a brand. The main reasons are as:

1. Trademarks are an effective communication tool.

2. Trademarks make it easy for customers to find you.
3. Trademarks allow businesses to effectively utilize the Internet and social
media
4. Trademarks are a valuable asset.
5. Trademarks can make hiring easier.
6. Trademarks never expire.

Registration process of Trademark law:

Advantages of trademark law:
The advantages that registered trademarks are given under trademark law are:
 Incontestable status after five years of continuous use.
 Nationwide notice that the trademark is owned and registered.
 Ability to bring an infringement lawsuit in federal court.
 Ability to potentially recover treble damages, attorneys fees, and other costs.

Limitations of trademark law:

It incorporates two categories that must be met:
1. Use in commerce
2. Distinctiveness
Use In Commerce:
For a mark to be eligible for trademark protection, it must be used in commerce. This
is because trademark law is grounded in the ability of Congress to regulate interstate
commerce granted by the Constitution.
The Lanham Act defines a trademark as "a mark used in commerce”.
A Trademark Must Be Distinctive
The second requirement is used to make sure that a mark is identifiable and distinctive from
other marks. If a mark is generic or non-distinguishable from other marks, it isn't eligible for
protection under trademark law.
 Online Dispute Resolution(ODR)
 Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) “refers to a wide class of alternate dispute resolution
processes that take advantage of the availability and increasing development of internet
technology.
 Online dispute resolution (ODR) is a branch of dispute resolution which uses technology to
facilitate the resolution of disputes between parties.
 It primarily involves negotiation, mediation or arbitration, or a combination of all three.
  There are three main types of dispute classifications within the ODR framework:
1. Business to Business (B2B):
Business to Business (B2B) disputes revolve around two commercial parties that
are seeking to resolve a dispute over a specific transaction.
2. Business to Consumer (B2C):
Business to Consumer (B2C) disputes are becoming more common, particular
with the expansion of e-commerce. B2C disputes tend to be low-cost, but high-
volume, and may involve unequal bargaining power between the consumer and
the business.
3. Consumer to Consumer (C2C):
Consumer to consumer (C2C) disputes involve transactions between two
consumers (i.e. the sale of a used item). These types of e-commerce
transactions are also becoming more common with websites such as eBay.

ODR Process:

Characteristics of ODR:
 Voluntary
 Informal
  Confidential

 Assisted

Advantages of ODR:
 ODR is a generally informal, flexible and creative tool of dispute resolution
 ODR may reduce litigation costs
 ODR may be the appropriate option particularly for low-cost
 ODR also allows for a more cost-efficient resolution of disputes
 ODR is confidential
 ODR may be appropriate where there are sensitivities between the parties

Alternative Dispute Resolution(ADR)

 Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is the procedure for settling disputes without
litigation, such as arbitration, mediation, or negotiation.
 ADR procedures are usually less costly and more expeditious. They are
increasingly being utilized in disputes that would otherwise result in litigation,
including high-profile labor disputes, divorce actions, and personal injury claims.
 One of the primary reasons parties may prefer ADR proceedings is that, unlike
adversarial litigation, ADR procedures are often collaborative and allow the parties
to understand each other's positions.
 ADR also allows the parties to come up with more creative solutions that a court
may not be legally allowed to impose.

Types of ADR/methods of ADR:

 Electronic database and its protection
 Electronic database are collection of recorded data or information in an electronic or
digital form. Databases form the core of information technology.
 Tremendous resources are often invested to assemble large quantities of information into
database.
 Components of an Electronic Database: An electronic database typically consists of
an operating platform(the hardware and operating system software on which the
database resides), the database application software, the data, and the database itself
In addition, between the database software application layer and the data sits the
database architecture, comprising the structure and schema of the database
 Fig: basic component of electronic database

 Each of these component can attract a range of different rights.

 Electronic databases are an important part of the information economy. The Internet,
and the development of on-line services as an effective business tool, has meant that
electronic databases are now one of the key platforms for the delivery of information and
content. And must be properly protected.

Protection of database: protection of database and associated rights is gaining traction in

India. Personal and sensitive data is protected under the information technology rules 2011(IT
rules).
Indian provisions for protection of database rights: in india there is no separate legislation for
the protection of general database rights as is the case in the European Union or the one proposed
in Singapore.
The limited protection available to database rights in India is as follows:
1. Article 21 of the constitution guarantees every citizen the fundamental right to personal
liberty which includes the right to privacy and by extension private data not available in
public domain.
 2. Copyright to a database is protected under copyright Act,1957(“Copyright Act”) and the
provisions of the IT Act which deal with protection of data along with penal provisions
dealing with compensation and violation of the same Act.

Advantages of electronic database protection:

Jo man me aaye likh lena…….

Copyright Law
Copyright law is the area of law that protects the right of authors, artists and creators to
profit from their work.
The purpose of copyright law is to encourage people to make creative works. Lawmakers
believe that people are more likely to invest the time and effort to make creative, artistic
works if they know they’re going to have the exclusive right to profit from those works.
Copyright law protects expressions of ideas rather than the ideas themselves. Under
section 13 of the Copyright Act 1957, copyright protection is conferred on literary works,
dramatic works, musical works, artistic works, cinematograph films and sound recording.
For example, books, computer programs are protected under the Act as literary works.
Copyright: Copyright is a legal right, existing in many countries, that grants the creator of an
original work exclusive rights to determine whether, and under what conditions, this original
work may be used by others. This is usually only for a limited time.

Types of Works Protected by Copyright(make diagram by ur self {round wala}):

Copyright law protects "works of authorship." The Copyright Act states that works of
authorship include the following types of works:
 Literary works. Novels, nonfiction prose, poetry, newspaper articles and newspapers,
magazine articles and magazines, computer software, software documentation and
manuals, training manuals, manuals, catalogs, brochures, ads (text), and compilations
such as business directories
 Musical works. Songs, advertising jingles, and instrumentals.
 Dramatic works. Plays, operas, and skits.
 Pantomimes and choreographic works. Ballets, modern dance, jazz dance, and mime
works.
  Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works. Photographs, posters, maps, paintings,
drawings, graphic art, display ads, cartoon strips and cartoon characters, stuffed
animals, statues, paintings, and works of fine art.
 Motion pictures and other audiovisual works. Movies, documentaries, travelogues,
training films and videos, television shows, television ads, and interactive multimedia
works.
 Sound recordings. Recordings of music, sounds, or words.
 Architectural works. Building designs, whether in the form of architectural plans,
drawings, or the constructed building itself.

Copyright Registration process:

Indian perspective on copyright protection:

The Copyright Act, 1957 provides copyright protection in India. It confers copyright
protection in the following two forms:
(A) Economic rights of the author, and
(B) Moral Rights of the author.

(A) Economic Rights:

The copyright subsists in original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works;
cinematographs films and sound recordings. The authors of copyright in the aforesaid works
enjoy economic rights u/s 14 of the Act.
(B) Moral Rights:
Section 57 of the Act defines the two basic “moral rights” of an author. These are:
(i) Right of paternity, and
(ii) Right of integrity.

Advantages of Registering Your Copyright

The advantages of registering a copyright include the following:
1. Establishes a public record of the copyright holder's ownership.

2. Enables copyright holders to sue infringers in federal court.

3. If made before or within 5 years of publication, establishes sufficient evidence in court

concerning the validity of the copyright and the facts stated in the copyright certificate.