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At the end of Section seventy-one of the principal Act, which relates to the entry of assignments and transmissions in registers, the following Sub-section shall be inserted:—
(4) Except in applications made under Section seventy-two of this Act, an assignment, transmission or mortgage of, or any other instrument affecting the title to, a patent or the copyright in a registered design, or any interest therein, or a licence to use a patent or registered design, shall not be admitted in evidence in any Court unless it has been entered on the register of patents or the register of designs as the case may be.
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Lords Amendment: Leave out the Clause, and insert instead thereof Clause B.
B. For Section seventy-one of the principal Act the following Section shall be substituted:—
71.—(1) Where a person becomes entitled by assignment, transmission, or other operation of law to a patent or to the copyright in a registered troller to register his title, and the comptroller shall, on receipt of such application and on proof of title to his satisfaction, register him as the proprietor of such patent or design and shall cause an entry to be made in the prescribed manner on the register of the assignment, transmission, or other instrument affecting the title.
(2) Where any person becomes entitled as mortgagee, licensee, or otherwise to any interest in a. patent or design, he shall make application to the comptroller to register his title, and the comptroller shall, on receipt of such application, and on proof of title to his satisfaction, cause notice of the interest to be entered in the prescribed manner in the register of patents or designs, as the case may be with particulars of the instrument, if any, creating such interests
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(3) The person registered as the proprietor of a patent or design shall, subject to the provisions of the Act and to ally rights appearing from the register to be vested in any other person have power absolutely to assign, grant licences as to or otherwise deal with the patent or design, and to give effectual receipts for any consideration for any such assignment., licence, or dealing:
Provided that any equities in respect of the patent or design may be enforced in like manner as in respect of any other personal property.
(4) Except in applications made under Section seventy-two of this Act, a document or instrument in respect of which no entry has been made in the register in accordance with the provisions of Sub-sections (1) and (2) aforesaid, shall not be admitted in evidence in any Court in proof of the title to a patent or copyright in a design or to any interest therein unless the Court otherwise directs.
§ Lords Amendment read a second time.
§ Sir E. POLLOCKI beg to move, "That this House cloth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment."
This is a longer Amendment, and I venture to trouble the House with an explanation of it. It really deals with the question of assignments and transfers of patents, and the effect of it is to transfer the title of the patent. It is quite obvious that some method must be adopted whereby some changes of ownership ultimately appear on the register. At the same time it is necessary to safeguard the rights of persons who have acquired tentative interest in the patent. This is a Clause which has been moved by Lord Moulton in the House of Lords after careful consideration. I think it safeguards the interests of all persons concerned and is far better than the old Clause. I beg to move that the House agree with the Lords.