Amendments to Hungarian Patent Law Explained

As part of the complex revision of the Hungarian intellectual property laws, the amendments to Act XXXIII of 1995 on the Protection of Inventions by Patents came into force on April 1, 2013.

The amendments implement international agreements and EU rules into the Hungarian law and introduce significant patent legislation changes.

Below is the summary of the most important amendments.

Stricter Regulations Concerning the Number of Petition Copies

Several modifications were introduced in connection with the required number of petition copies. If fewer copies are filed than prescribed by the law, the whole petition will be considered not to have been submitted.

Right of Access to Unpublished Patent Documentation Broadens

The amendments prescribe the right of access to patent application documents before their publication for courts, public prosecutors and investigative authorities during official inspections.

Withdrawal or Modification of Decision

In specific proceedings where no adverse parties are involved, the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office (HIPO) is entitled to withdraw or modify its decision adequate to the request for reconsideration even if the decision itself does not infringe the law but the HIPO agrees with the content of the request. The modified decision is to be reported to the petitioner as well as to the persons to whom the former decision was reported. The remedies are the same as against the former decision.

Amendments Concerning Percentage of Patent Right

In case of multiple inventors, the inventors can decide about the percentage of the patent rights. Before the amendments, this percentage could be changed only after the publication of the patent application and now it is possible to request the change prior to the publication of the patent as well.

Amendments Concerning Novelty Search

The starting date of the term for the preparation and for the dispatch of a search report supplemented with a written opinion has changed from the filing date of the patent application to the day on which the applicant requests such a report.

By: Dorottya Vittay

For more information, please contact Dorottya Vittay at our Hungary office.