Prior to April 2013 there were a number of significant distinctions between Australian patent law and the corresponding law for example in the USA and Europe, but to a large extent the Raising the Bar Act that became effective from 15 April 2013 has resulted in harmonisation.  The provisions of the Raising the Bar Act and the important changes that it embodies will be discussed in detail, including the changes to the test for inventive step, the new requirement for utility and the expanded ground of sufficiency (enablement). Importantly for the research community, the Raising the Bar Act resulted in codification of an experimental use exemption from patent infringement. Brief summaries will also be provided of the second tier 'innovation patent' system that exists in Australia, of the framework for extensions of term for pharmaceutical patents and of the process relating to introduction of generic pharmaceutical products onto the Australian market and the actions that innovator companies can take to prevent market entry.

Australian developments in patent law

248th National Meeting (2014)

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