The EU Integration Committee discussed the changes to the Law on Patent and the deriving Bills. “The package of the legal changes will facilitate the fulfillment of the Association Agreement commitments on the enhancement of the institutional cooperation with the EU, including in the protection of the intellectual property”, - the Chair, Maka Botchorishvili stated.
The package was introduced by the Deputy Chair of the National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia “Sakpatenti”, Nino Chikovani.
“The changes chase two main goals – the Validation Agreement concluded in 2019 between the Georgian Government and the European Patent Organization, envisaging the establishment of the European patent validation system and the reflection of the respective legal changes to the national legislation; and bringing the Law on Patent in compliance with the European Patent Convention and the International Agreement on the Law of Patent”, - the reporter noted.
According to her, the adoption of the changes and the enactment of the Validation Agreement play the function of the key instruments for the further development of the patent system in Georgia boosting the protection of the industrial property to facilitate the achievement of the EUAA objectives and gradual integration of the Georgian economy to the EU market.
As the reporter elucidated, exercising the legal changes and enacting the Validation Agreement will as well simplify the negotiations concerning the accession of Georgia to the EPO. As the draft changes stipulate, the European patent application and the European patent validated in Georgia are to carry the same legal force and be subject to the same terms as applied to the National Patent Application and the National Patent as prescribed under the Law on Patent. Pursuant to the Validation Agreement, the application shall enjoy the rights similar to the rights that might be granted to Georgia on the basis of the National Patent by the validated European Patent and upon the promulgation of the information on its issue by the EPO.
Based on the request of the applicant, the European Patent Application and the European Patent issued on the basis thereof shall be validated on the territory of Georgia to simplify the patent procedures for the foreign citizens in Georgia.
“Currently, the invention can be patented in Georgia in two ways – by the application submitted to “Sakpatenti” and the international EPC system when the patent is approved by the international application. Now, the third way shall be introduced – validation of the European patents. It will be a cost-effective procedure for the foreign applicants and a guarantee their invention will be patented and protected in Georgia according to European standards. The ratification of the Validation Agreement will constitute a huge step taken by Georgia for the accession to the EPO. Our ultimate goal is to access to the European patent agency”, - she added.
The Committee approved the package.
