Inventions summary

The legal protection of a patentable invention is granted by a patent issued by the Patent Office and certifying the exclusive right of the owner of the invention.

Patentable are inventions in all fields of technology that are new, have an inventive step and are industrially applicable.

According to the Act on Patents and Registration of Utility Models (APRUM) the following are not considered inventions:

• discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods;
• results of artistic creativity;
• plans, rules and methods for intellectual activity, for games or business and computer programs;

No patents shall be granted for inventions the commercial use of which violates public order and morals, nor for inventions relating to:

• methods for human cloning;
• methods for altering the genetic identity of a human embryo;
• use of human embryos for industrial or commercial purposes;
• methods of modifying the genetic identity of animals, if there is a risk of causing them suffering, without making a significant medical benefit to humans or animals;
• methods of treating humans or animals by therapy or surgery, as well as methods of diagnosing humans or animals;
• plant varieties and animal breeds;
• biological methods for the production of plants and animals.

The extent of the legal protection shall be determined by the claims. The description and drawings shall be used to interpret the claims.

The term of validity of the patent is 20 years from the date of filing the application.

The patent has territorial effect.

Right to apply

The right to file an application shall belong to the inventor or his legal successor. Whenever such a right belongs to several persons it shall be exercised by them jointly. Refusal by one or more of these persons to participate in the filing of an application or in the proceeding for granting a patent shall not prevent the others from performing laws pursuant to this Act.

1. The applicant shall be deemed to have the right to apply until otherwise established in court.

2. The right to claim an invention created under the conditions of Art. 15 of the APRUM, shall belong to the employer if he files an application within three months of receiving the notification of the invention from the inventor. If he fails to do so the right to apply for a patent shall be transferred to the inventor. The right to apply for a patent may belong jointly to the employer and the inventor if such an agreement has been made in a contract.

3. Where the invention is created on the basis of a contract, the right of claim belongs to the assignor unless otherwise provided in the contract.

Right of the inventor to be indicated

The inventor of the invention has the right to be indicated in the application, in the issued patent for invention, as well as in publications about the invention. This right is personal and non-transferable.

The Patent Office monitors ex officio the indication of the inventor or co-inventors in the application and in the issued patent.