Patent Law Treaty

The Patent Law Treaty (PLT) is a treaty adopted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on 1 June 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland. It entered into force on April 28, 2005. It aims at harmonizing and streamlining formal procedures such as the requirements to obtain a filing date for a patent application, the form and content of a patent application, and representation. The treaty "does not establish a uniform procedure for all parties to the PLT but leaves parties free to require fewer or more user-friendly requirements than those provided in the PLT."[1] As of July 2026, the PLT had 44 contracting states, that includes the European Patent Organisation (EPO) and the Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO).[2]

History

The adoption of the Patent Cooperation Treaty in 1970 simplified the filling of patent applications by harmonizing certain procedural requirements at the international level; however, many countries continued to differ in the patentability requirements they imposed in their national laws.[3] Thus, it became clear that there was also a need to harmonize the substantive requirements across the various jurisdictions in order to further improve and standardize the international patent system.

Negotiations to achieve such harmonization began in the mid-1980s. One of the first attempts was a draft of an instrument called the Patent Harmonization Treaty, which was discussed in a diplomatic conference held in The Hague in 1991.[3] However, the negotiations were abandoned in 1993 due to the opposition of the United States to accepting the “first-to-file” principle, and also because in a parallel way the TRIPS Agreement had been negotiated, which included many similar provisions to those taken in the draft of the Patent Harmonization Treaty.[3]

Two years later, during the meetings of the WIPO General Assembly and the Paris Union Assembly held between September 25 and October 3, 1995, it was agreed to convene a committee of experts to discuss a new draft of patent law treaty prepated by WIPO.[4] Such committee held its first session in Geneva from December 11 to 15, 1995 with the representation of 67 states members of WIPO or the Paris Union, and representatives of European Communities, the European Patent Office, the Organization of African Unity and the World Trade Organization as observers.[4]

The treaty negotiations lasted another four years until, in September 1999, during the Thirty-Fourth Series of Meetings of the WIPO Assembly of Member States, a resolution was adopted to convene a diplomatic conference for the adoption of the Patent Law Treaty (PLT).[5]

The Diplomatic Conference for the Adoption of the PLT was held in Geneva, Switzerland from May 11 to June 2, 2000. The Patent Law Treaty was adopted on June 1, 2000 and opened for signature on June 2, 2000. That day, 47 countries signed.[6]

Adoption process per country

France

Prior to the entry into force of the treaty in France, a bill was submitted on 14 January 2009 at the French Senate proposing the ratification of the PLT by France.[7][8] In March 2009, a report from French Senator Rachel Mazuir recommended the ratification of the PLT, as soon as possible, by France.[9][10] On 24 July 2009, the government was authorized to ratify the PLT.[11] The PLT then entered into force for France on 5 January 2010.[2]

United States

The Treaty was transmitted from the President to the Senate in 2006. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee issued its Executive Report 110-6 in November 2007. Non-self-executing portions of the PLT were implemented as statute by the Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act of 2012, Pub. Law 112-211 (Dec. 12, 2012). The PLT was ratified by the United States on 18 September 2013, and the ratification instrument was forwarded to WIPO. The Patent Office's implementing regulations were proposed at 78 Fed. Reg. 21788 (Apr. 11, 2013) and issued as a Final Rule at 78 Fed. Reg. 62367 (Oct. 21, 2013).

Mexico

Article 20(7)(3) of the proposed new NAFTA, in December 2019, stated that "Each Party shall give due consideration to ratifying or acceding to the PLT, or, in the alternative, shall adopt or maintain procedural standards consistent with the objective of the PLT".[12]

Contracting parties

Contracting States to the Patent Law Treaty and dates of entry into force[2]
Contracting PartySignatureInstrumentIn Force
Albania—Accession: February 17, 2010May 17, 2010
AlgeriaJune 2, 2000——
Antigua and Barbuda—Accession: March 25, 2019June 25, 2019
Armenia—Accession: June 17, 2013September 17, 2013
Australia—Accession: December 16, 2008March 16, 2009
AustriaJune 2, 2000——
Bahrain—Accession: September 15, 2005December 15, 2005
Belarus—Accession: July 21, 2016October 21, 2016
BelgiumJune 2, 2000——
Bosnia and Herzegovina—Accession: February 9, 2012May 9, 2012
BrazilJune 2, 2000——
Burkina FasoMay 11, 2001——
BurundiJune 2, 2000——
CanadaMay 21, 2001Ratification: July 30, 2019October 30, 2019
Ivory CoastJuly 20, 2000——
CroatiaJune 2, 2000Ratification: December 20, 2004April 28, 2005
CubaJune 2, 2000——
Czech RepublicJune 2, 2000——
North KoreaJune 2, 2000Ratification: May 22, 2018August 22, 2018
DenmarkJune 2, 2000Ratification: March 16, 2004April 28, 2005
EstoniaJune 2, 2000Ratification: April 14, 2003April 28, 2005
EswatiniJune 2, 2000——
Eurasian Patent Organization—Accession: December 17, 2025March 17, 2026
European Patent OrganisationMay 17, 2001——
Finland—Accession: December 6, 2005March 6, 2006
FranceSeptember 14, 2000Ratification: October 5, 2009January 5, 2010
GambiaJune 2, 2000——
GermanyMay 29, 2001——
GhanaJune 2, 2000——
GreeceJune 2, 2000——
HaitiJune 2, 2000——
HungaryJune 2, 2000Ratification: December 12, 2007March 12, 2008
IrelandMay 31, 2001Ratification: February 27, 2012May 27, 2012
IsraelJune 2, 2000——
ItalyJune 2, 2000——
Japan—Accession: March 11, 2016June 11, 2016
Kazakhstan—Accession: July 19, 2011October 19, 2011
KenyaJune 2, 2000——
KyrgyzstanJune 2, 2000Ratification: April 24, 2002April 28, 2005
LatviaJune 2, 2000Ratification: March 12, 2010June 12, 2010
LebanonJune 2, 2000——
LiberiaJune 2, 2000Ratification: October 4, 2016January 4, 2017
Liechtenstein—Accession: September 18, 2009December 18, 2009
Lithuania—Accession: November 3, 2011February 3, 2012
LuxembourgJune 2, 2000——
MadagascarJune 2, 2000——
MalawiJune 2, 2000——
MonacoJune 28, 2000——
Montenegro—Accession: December 9, 2011March 9, 2012
NetherlandsMay 31, 2001Ratification: September 27, 2010December 27, 2010
NigeriaJune 2, 2000Ratification: December 19, 2002April 28, 2005
North Macedonia—Accession: January 22, 2010April 22, 2010
Oman—Accession: July 16, 2007October 16, 2007
PolandJune 2, 2000——
PortugalJune 2, 2000——
MoldovaJune 2, 2000Ratification: September 27, 2001April 28, 2005
RomaniaJune 2, 2000Ratification: January 28, 2005April 28, 2005
Russia—Accession: May 12, 2009August 12, 2009
San MarinoOctober 10, 2000——
São Tomé and PríncipeJune 2, 2000——
Saudi Arabia—Accession: May 3, 2013August 3, 2013
Serbia—Accession: May 20, 2010August 20, 2010
Slovakia—Accession: July 16, 2002April 28, 2005
SloveniaJune 2, 2000Ratification: May 8, 2002April 28, 2005
SpainJune 2, 2000Ratification: August 6, 2013November 6, 2013
SudanJune 2, 2000——
SwedenMay 17, 2001Ratification: September 27, 2007December 27, 2007
 SwitzerlandJune 2, 2000Ratification: March 31, 2008July 1, 2008
TogoJune 2, 2000——
TurkeyJune 2, 2000——
Turkmenistan—Accession: April 19, 2021July 19, 2021
UgandaJune 2, 2000——
Ukraine—Accession: March 31, 2003April 28, 2005
United KingdomJune 2, 2000Ratification: December 22, 2005March 22, 2006
United StatesJune 2, 2000Ratification: September 18, 2013December 18, 2013
Uzbekistan—Accession: April 19, 2006July 19, 2006
ZambiaJune 2, 2000——

See also

References

  1. ↑ Mulder, Cees; van Woudenberg, Roel (2022). "New Rule 56a and amendments to Rule 56 EPC - Background, requirements and consequences". Epi Information.
  2. 1 2 3 "Contracting Parties > Patent Law Treaty". WIPO. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Takenaka, Toshiko, ed. (26 April 2019). Research Handbook on Patent Law and Theory: Second Edition. Edward Elgar Publishing. pp. 35–36. doi:10.4337/9781785364129. ISBN 978-1-78536-412-9.
  4. 1 2 "PLT/CE/I/5. Committee of experts on the Patent Law Treaty. First Session. Geneva, December 11 to 15, 1995. Report adopted by the Committee of Experts". wipo.int. 15 December 1995. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  5. ↑ World Intellectual Property Organization (29 September 1999). "A/34/16. Assemblies of the member states of WIPO. Thirty-Fourth Series of Meetings. Geneva, September 20 to 29, 1999. General Report" (PDF). wipo.int. p. 72. § 169. Retrieved 13 July 2026.
  6. ↑ World Intellectual Property Organization (2000). Records of the Diplomatic Conference for the Adoption of the Patent Law Treaty :: Geneva, 2000. World Intellectual Property Organization. pp. 112–113. doi:10.34667/tind.28809.
  7. ↑ (in French) French Senate web site, Sénat, Session Ordinaire de 2008–2009, Annexe au procès-verbal de la séance du 14 janvier 2009, Projet de Loi autorisant la ratification du traité sur le droit des brevets, 14 January 2009. Consulted on 22 January 2009
  8. ↑ (in French) Laurent Teyssedre, Ratification du PLT, Le blog du droit européen des brevets, 20 January 2009. Consulted on 22 January 2009
  9. ↑ (in French) French Senate web site, Annexe au procès-verbal de la séance du 17 mars 2009, Rapport fait au nom de la commission des Affaires étrangères, de la défense et des forces armées sur le projet de loi autorisant la ratification du traité sur le droit des brevets, Par M. Rachel Mazuir, Sénateur
  10. ↑ (in French) Laurent Teyssedre, Ratification du PLT (suite), Le blog du droit européen des brevets, 25 March 2009. Consulted on 29 March 2009
  11. ↑ (in French) JORF n°0170 du 25 juillet 2009 page 12409, texte n° 3, LOI n° 2009-892 du 24 juillet 2009 autorisant la ratification du traité sur le droit des brevets, NOR: MAEJ0815903L
  12. ↑ CHAPTER 20: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS: Section A: General Provisions (PDF).

Further reading

  • Mulder, Cees (November 2014). "Patent Law Treaty: Promises Not Delivered-How the Negotiations Resulted in Ambiguities in the Treaty: Patent Law Treaty". The Journal of World Intellectual Property. 17 (5–6): 160–190. doi:10.1002/jwip.12028.
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