Patents Act, 1978 (Act No. 57 of 1978)Chapter XV : Offences and penalties85. Penalties for certain false representations |
| (1) | Any person who— |
| (a) | falsely represents that any article is a patented article; or |
| (b) | represents that any article is the subject of a patent application, knowing that no such application has been made or that an application made in respect thereof has been refused or withdrawn or has lapsed, |
shall be guilty of an offence and on conviction liable to a fine not exceeding R1 000 or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 12 months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
| (2) | If any person disposes of any article on which is stamped, engraved or impressed or to which is otherwise applied the word “patent”, “patented” or any other word expressing or implying that the article is patented, or to which any marking is applied in any manner expressing or implying that the article is patented, he shall be deemed for the purposes of this section to represent that the article is a patented article. |
| (3) | The provisions of subsection (2) shall not apply to a person who disposes of articles in good faith in the ordinary course of trade provided, when called upon to do so, he discloses the identity of the person from whom he acquired the article in question. |
| (4) | Any person who is of the opinion that he is prejudiced by a representation referred to in subsection (1) (a) or (b), may apply to the commissioner for an interdict against the continuation of that representation. |
[Section 85 substituted by section 8 of Act No. 67 of 1983.]