Patents Act, 1978 (Act No. 57 of 1978)Chapter XIV : Acquisition of rights to inventions and patents by the State79. Assignment of certain patents to the State |
| (1) | The proprietor of an invention relating to any armaments as defined in section 1 of the Armaments Development and Production Act, 1968 (Act No. 57 of 1968), shall, if called upon to do so by the Minister of Defence, assign the invention or the patent obtained or to be obtained for the invention to that Minister on behalf of the State. |
| (2) | The assignment and any agreements therein contained shall be valid and effectual and may be enforced by appropriate proceedings in the name of the Minister of Defence. |
| (3) | Where an invention has been so assigned, the Minister of Defence may, by notice in writing to the registrar, direct that the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed shall be kept secret. |
| (4) | Every application, specification, amendment of specification or drawing received at the patent office relating to any invention in respect of which notice in terms of subsection (3) has been given, shall be sealed up by the registrar and the contents of such application, specification, drawing or other document shall not be divulged without the written permission of the Minister of Defence. |
| (5) | The patent for any such invention may be made out in the name of the proprietor and sealed, but such patent shall be delivered to the Minister of Defence and not to such proprietor and shall be the property of the State, and no proceedings shall lie for the revocation of the patent. |
| (6) | The communication of any such invention to the Minister of Defence or to any person authorized by him to inquire into the invention shall not, nor shall anything done for the purpose of the inquiry by such person, be deemed to be publication or use of the invention so as to prejudice the grant or validity of any patent for the invention. |
| (7) | The Minister of Defence may by notice in writing to the registrar direct that any invention directed to be kept secret need no longer be kept secret, and thereupon the specification and drawings may be published. |
| (8) | The said Minister shall pay to the proprietor of the invention or patent such reasonable compensation as may be agreed upon or as may, in default of agreement, be determined by arbitration or, if the parties so agree, by the commissioner. |