§ 41. Mr. K. Robinsonasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will amend the regulations governing applications for compulsory licences under Section 41 of the Patents Act, 1949, in such a way as to prevent patent-holders, through the imposition of a time limit, from delaying for long periods the hearing of opposed applications.
§ Mr. ErrollNo. Both parties must be given adequate opportunity to prepare their cases and submit their evidence and counter-evidence and this needs time, particularly if one party is abroad. An174W arbitrary overall time limit, unless a very long one, might work unjustly on one or other party.