• The Semiconductor Integrated Circuit Layout Design Act 2000

(SICLDA) was enacted in order to fulfil the obligations of the

Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
(TRIPS)
• 2011 that its provisions came into force.
Layout design
• “layout-design” means a layout of transistors and other circuitry
elements and includes lead wires connecting such elements and
expressed in any manner in a semiconductor integrated circuit;
Semiconductor Integrated Circuit
“semiconductor integrated circuit” means
• a product having transistors
• circuitry elements which are inseparably formed on a semiconductor
material
• Insulating material inside the semiconductor material
• Designed to perform an electronic circuitry function;
• As per the provisions of this Act, Registrar Semiconductor Integrated
Circuits Layout-Design Registry under the Ministry of Electronics and
Information Technology (MeitY) has been appointed with its head
office at Electronics Niketan, 6 CGO Complex, Lodi Road New Delhi-
110003.
• The Registry maintains the Register of Layout-Designs and records in
it the registered layout-designs with the names, addresses, and
descriptions of the proprietor and such other matters related to the
registered layout-designs.
Registration Procedure
• Any person who wants to register his layout-design is required to
apply in writing to the Registrar Semiconductor Integrated Circuits
Layout-Design Registry in the concerned territorial jurisdiction, as per
the procedure prescribed in the SICLD Act, 2000.
• The Registrar after scrutiny may refuse the application or may accept
it absolutely or with amendments or modifications, as he may
consider necessary.
Requirements for Registration
• Original
• Creator’s Intellectual Efforts
• Not Commonly Known
• Not commonly known combination of elements and interconnections
provided such combination taken as a whole is the result of its
creator's own intellectual efforts
• According to SICLD Act, 2000, layout-design is to be considered as original
if it is the result of its creator’s intellectual efforts and is not commonly
known to the creators of layout-designs and manufacturers of
semiconductor integrated circuits at the time of its creation.
• The Act further provides that a layout-design consisting of such
combination of elements and interconnections that are commonly known
among creators of layout-designs and manufacturers of semiconductor
integrated circuits shall be considered as original if such combination taken
as a whole is the result of its creator’s intellectual efforts.
• Furthermore, this Act provides that where an original layout-design has
been created in execution of a commission or a contract of employment,
the right of registration to such layout-design shall belong, in the absence
of any contractual provision to the contrary, to the person who
commissioned the work or to the employer.
Non Registrable
• Layout design which is not original is prohibited.
• Similarly, the registration of layout design which has been commercially
exploited anywhere in India or a convention country has been prohibited.
• Layout design which is not inherently distinctive or which is not inherently
capable of being distinguishable from any other registered layout-design
also cannot be registered.
• The Act, however, provides that a layout-design which has been
commercially exploited for not more than two years from the date on
which an application for its registration has been filed either in India or a
convention country shall be considered as not having been commercially
exploited.
Duration
• As per SICLD Act, 2000, the registration of a layout-design is done
only for ten years w.e.f. from the date of filing an application for
registration or from the date of first commercial exploitation
anywhere in India or any country, whichever is earlier.
Infringement
Any act of
• Reproducing
• Importing
• Selling
• distributing for commercial purposes amounts to Infringement
• No reference to Civil Remedies. However, express provisions for
punishment and fine.
No Infringement
• Where such act is performed for:
• limited purposes of scientific evaluation
• Analysis, Research, Teaching, or
• where a person, on the basis of scientific evaluation or analysis of a
registered layout-design, creates another layout-design which is
original
Infringement
• Only a registered proprietor of the layout-design or a registered user can make
use the layout design.
• Under the Act any person who infringes the layout design shall be liable to pay
the proprietor of the registered layout-design, royalty to be determined by
negotiation between registered proprietor and that person or by the Appellate
Board.
• Such royalty is negotiated keeping in view the benefit that accrued to the person
who has infringed the layout design as per the SICLD Act, 2000. The
users/purchaser of infringed layout design is entitled to the immunity from
infringement under this Act. Use of registered layout-design with the written
consent of the registered proprietor of a registered layout-design also shall not
constitute infringement. Also, where any person creates a layout design by
application of independent intellect which is identical to a registered layout-
design, then, such act shall not constitute infringement of the registered layout-
design.
Plant Varieties Act

• Plant variety protection provides legal protection of a plant variety to

a breeder in the form of Plant breeder’s rights.
• Plant Breeder’s Rights are intellectual property rights that provide
exclusive rights to a breeder of the registered variety.
• sui generis system, is an attempt by the Indian Government to
recognize and protect the rights of both commercial plant breeders
and farmers in respect of their contribution made in conserving,
improving and making available plant genetic resources for
development of new plant varieties and to encourage the
development of new plants varieties.
Plant Variety
• A variety is a plant grouping within a single botanical taxon of the
lowest known rank, defined by the expression of the characteristics
resulting from a given genotype or combination of genotypes. The
variety should be distinguished from other plant grouping by
expression and should be considered as a unit with regard to its
suitability for being propagated unchanged
• New Variety : A Variety which is not in public domain in India earlier
than one year before the date of filing or outside India, in the case of
trees or vines earlier than six years or in any other case earlier than
four years.
• Extant Variety: A Variety which is notified under Seed Act, 1966 or a
variety about which there is common knowledge or a farmer’s variety
or any other variety which is in public domain is considers as an
Extant Variety.
• Farmer’s Variety: A Variety which has been traditionally cultivated and
evolved by the farmers in their fields or a variety which is a wild
relative or land race of a variety about which farmers possess
common knowledge
• Essentially Derived Variety (EDV): i)Predominantly derived from such
initial variety, or from a variety that itself is predominantly derived
from such initial variety, while retaining the expression of the
essential characteristics that result from the genotype or combination
of genotypes of such initial variety.
• ii) Is clearly distinguishable from such initial variety; and
• iii) Conforms to such initial variety in the expression of the essential
characteristics
NON-REGISTERABLE PLANT VARIETIES IN
INDIA
• All plant varieties cannot get legal protection in India.
• Certain Plant varieties are excluded from the protection under PPVFR Act
2001.
• Any variety where prevention of commercial exploitation of such variety is
necessary to protect public order or public morality or human, animal and
plant life and health
• to avoid serious prejudice to the environment
• any varieties which has terminator technology
• any variety belonging to the species or genera which is not listed in the
notification issued by the Central Government cannot be registered for the
protection under the Act.
CRITERIA FOR PROTECTING A PLANT VARIETY
• The plant variety must be:
• Distinct: A variety should be clearly distinguishable by at least one
essential characteristic from existing or commonly known varieties in
any country at the time of filing of the application.
• Uniform: A Variety must be sufficiently uniform in its essential
characteristics.
• Stable: Essential characteristics of a variety must be stable after
repeated propagation or in the case of a particular cycle of
propagation at the end of each cycle.
Who can Apply
• any person claiming to be the breeder of the variety;
• any successor of the breeder of the variety;
• any person being the Assignee or the breeder of the variety in respect
of the right to make such application;
• any farmer or group of farmers or community of farmers claiming to
the breeder of the variety;
• any person authorized to make application on behalf of farmers; and
• any university or publicly funded agricultural institution claiming to
the breeder of the variety.
WHERE TO FILE THE APPLICATION
• Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Right Authority was
established in October 2005 and its Head Quarters is New Delhi
Duration
• Trees and Vines: 18 Years
• Other crops: 15 Years.
• Extant Varieties: 15 Years from the date of notification of that variety
by the Central Government under Seed Act, 1966