PATENTS
SNA
Subramaniam
& Associates
Attorneys-at-Law · Patent and Trademark Agents
Our patent attorneys all have strong technical backgrounds and expertise in handling patent cases relating to every area of technology, including mechanical, electrical, electronic, chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology inventions. Our patents department is responsible for reviewing technical literature provided by clients, drafting patent specifications, filing and prosecuting patent applications in every country of the world, conducting patent searches and providing expert opinion on patentability, patent validity, freedom to operate and infringement.
We are engaged in opposition proceedings for many of our overseas clients and also involved in several high profile contentious matters before various courts in India. We file and prosecute patent applications on instructions from several in-house counsels and leading law firms across the world.
We have a healthy mix of domestic and international clientele, and are exposed to - and aware of - the latest developments in most jurisdictions of the world.
How do Patents work in India?
Patent Law in India is governed primarily by The Patents Act, 1970, and The Patents Rules, 2003. The grant of a patent right confers upon the holder -
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where the subject matter of the patent is a product, the exclusive right to prevent third parties who do not have the patentee's consent, from the act of making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing for those purposes that product in India;
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where the subject matter of the patent is a process, the exclusive right to prevent third parties, who do not have the patentee's consent, from the act of using that process, and from the act of using, offering for sale, selling or importing for those purposes the product obtained directly by that process in India.
In 1948, India became a contracting party to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), a multilateral agreement regulating international trade. When the World Trade Organisation (WTO) replaced the GATT in 1995, India became a member of the WTO, and a signatory to the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement).
The TRIPS Agreement sets standards for WTO member countries of the minimum protection that must be offered to intellectual property rights holders, remedies for enforcement of intellectual property rights within the member countries as well as methods of dispute resolution between member countries with regard to TRIPS compliance and obligations. The Patents Act 1970 is TRIPS compliant, as is all related Indian legislation.
India is also a signatory to the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or the PCT. The PCT provides for an international filing date, an international search, and where desired, an international preliminary report on patentability.
Where do we come in?
FROM THE TIME YOUR INVENTION IS CONCEIVED
Our team of experts provides extensive prior art searches and detailed, nuanced opinions on patentability.
TO APPLYING FOR PROTECTION
We are widely regarded as the best in the country at drafting patent specifications. From drafting a water tight specification with impeccable claims, to filing applications with every last form completed and vetted by our world-class attorneys, we are equipped to handle it all.
TO PROSECUTING YOUR APPLICATION
Our attorneys are qualified in every area of technology, and well regarded not merely within the fraternity but also by Patent Examiners and Controllers alike. We are competent to manage a patent application at every stage. We fulfil all procedural and formal requirements along the way, we keep track of every one of the several deadlines that arise, we read, review, report and provide our legal and technical opinion on every office action issued on each application, and we attend and present arguments at hearings at the intellectual property office and appellate board regularly.
TO GRANT AND MAINTENANCE
The job does not end with the grant of a patent. We file statements of working, we attend to annuities and we attend to recording any changes the client may want to make at this stage, such as a license or an assignment.
TO OPPOSITIONS
Indian Patent Law provides for both pre-grant and post-grant oppositions. Our dedicated team of attorneys has a spectacular track record with patent oppositions.
AND ENFORCEMENT
Almost every single patent agent at SNA is a qualified attorney-at-law. Every patent matter is assessed and handled by us with both technical and legal expertise, which places SNA in the unique position to handle litigation, including instituting and defending invalidation proceedings.