§ Mr. Mikardoasked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) whether rules for implementation of the Patents Act will contain any provision for the Patent Office to keep an employee inventor informed on the status and development of the patent on his invention;
(2) what is his policy towards restriction of the prescribed period within which an employee may apply for compensation after the termination of a patent; and what consideration has been given to any minimum limit of time on the employee's right to claim compensation, as intended by the Patents Act;
(3) what steps he has taken to consult with the TUC and any appropriate unions on the implementation of Sections 39–43 of the Patents Act;
(4) what progress he has made in devising rules for implementation of the Patents Act, particularly in relation to Sections 39–43 on employee inventions.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisI expect to lay the Patents Rules before Parliament in the next few weeks. The rules will include a provision to the effect that an employed inventor must claim compensation within one year after the patent has ceased to have effect. It is not intended that a claim by the employee shall be restricted to the benefit derived by the employer over a certain period prior to the date of the claim. The TUC and the Institute of Patentees and Inventors have been consulted and the Rule has been approved unanimously by the Standing Advisory Committee on Patents, on which these and several other organisations are represented. If an employee inventor makes a request to the Patent Office he will be informed of events affecting the patent recorded on the Patents Register, in particular the date when a patent is granted and the date when it ceases to have effect.