Review of the Patents Act 1953 Stage 3: Boundaries to Patentability
In August 2000 the government agreed to a three-stage review of the Act to take account of the social and technological changes since the Act was passed. Stages 1 and 2 of the review have already been completed. Stage 3 of the review considers issues including the Act's definition of invention and its ability to deal with new technologies, and the ethical and cultural considerations surrounding the patenting inventions involving living organisms, genetic material and traditional knowledge.
A discussion document Boundaries to Patentability was released in March 2002 as part of Stage 3 of the Patents Act review. Submissions closed on 26 July 2002. A summary of the submissions was released on 20 November 2002. Cabinet agreed to policy proposals arising from Stage 3 of the Patents Act review on 28 July 2003.
On 20 December 2004 a Draft Patents Bill was released for public consultation. This consultation exercise is intended to help ensure that the legislation gives proper effect to the policy decisions that have been made and to minimise the risk of unintended consequences of change. Submissions closed 11 March 2005.
The Patents Bill was introduced to Parliament in July 2008 and was given its first reading on 5 May 2009. The Bill has been referred to the Commerce Select Committee. The Committee has called for submissions, which close on 2 July 2009. For further information on the Bill, and the process for making submissions, see the New Zealand Parliament website.
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