A case study in mineral processing patents In early 2022 a decision from the Australian Patent Office in Technological Resources Pty. Limited [2021] APO 52 (the Decision) got me thinking about the technology of heap leaching, and the many components or aspects of the heap leaching process that may properly be the subject of patent protection. The Decision related to …

Time for a Change? Australia has a pre-grant patent opposition procedure.  This means that, after a patent application has been advertised as accepted (i.e., “allowed” in US terms), any third party has a period of three (3) months in which to oppose the grant of a patent on the application.  Because patent infringement proceedings cannot be commenced until the patent …

ACCC action against Fuji This article summarises the recent decision in Australian Competition and Consumer Commission v Fujifilm Business Innovation Australia Pty Ltd, where the Federal Court declared that 38 contract terms included in 11 types of standard form contracts were unfair. This decision provides important guidance for businesses about terms that may be considered to be ‘unfair’ and serves …

Major reforms to Australia’s unfair contract terms regime will commence later this year – what do they mean for your business? Businesses now have until 9 November 2023 to remove or change terms that may be considered ‘unfair’ in their standard form contracts used with consumers and small businesses, or to consider whether they would rather provide the counterparty with …

The Issue Flying Under the Radar Australian patent law provides for extensions of term of up to 5 years, beyond the standard 20-year term, for patents directed to pharmaceutical inventions. The legal requirements for obtaining a pharmaceutical patent term extension (PTE) as stated in the Australian Patents Act 1990 are as follows: The patent must relate to a pharmaceutical substance …