PATENT PATERA. 



435 



his own right in future. Now an honest patentee 

 will, it is true, suffer in the immediate action the 

 penalty of his inadvertence, but no more. The dis- 

 honest one will render himself liable to the same 

 penalty, as often as he shall attempt to make use of 

 any right given him by a fraudulent claim. 



The second clause enacts, that if a patentee shall 

 have reproduced some old invention, believing him- 

 self to be the inventor, it shall be in the power of 

 the crown, upon a recommendation of the judicial 

 committee of the privy council, to continue the pa- 

 tent to the patentee, wherever it shall appear that 

 the invention has not been publicly and generally 

 used. It is feared by some persons that all kinds of 

 old inventions will be brought up again, and promul- 

 gated as new, under favour of this clause, and that 

 every body will be taking out patents for old and 

 abandoned projects. This appears very absurd. To 

 say nothing of the expense of taking out patents, 

 and the almost certainty of their being useless to the 

 patentee (for we may be well assured, that in ninety- 

 nine cases out of a hundred, the inventions would 

 not have been abandoned if they had not been use- 

 less,) there are so many checks against the continu- 

 ance of such patent by the crown to any but a bond 

 fide re-inventor, that few persons will feel inclined 

 to rake out old books for the purpose of picking up 

 lost inventions. If any person should be lucky 

 enough to re-produce an invention of value aban- 

 doned from any cause, and generally forgotten, we 

 see no harm in his having the monopoly of its use 

 for a few years, as a recompense for his bringing to 

 light a valuable idea, though we would rather he 

 should be entitled to it without any misrepresenta- 

 tion. 



The third clause contains a provision against the 

 repeated vexatious actions by which a patentee might 

 be put to enormous law expenses under the former 

 act. Before the passing of the new law, although 

 an action respecting the validity of a patent might 

 be decided in favour of the holder of the patent, this 

 verdict was no bar to a future action, nor to any 

 number of future actions. Although nothing new 

 could be alleged, although it was but going over the 

 same ground again and again, the patentee might be 

 compelled year after year to defend himself against 

 fresh actions to his great injury, perhaps to his ruin. 

 The clause enacts, that in any action respecting the 

 validity of a patent, if a verdict pass in favour of a 

 patentee, the certificate of the judge who tried the 

 action may be adduced in evidence on any future 

 action ; and if the verdict in such subsequent action 

 be given in favour of the patentee, he shall receive 

 treble costs. 



By the fourth clause, an extension of the term of 

 a patent, not exceeding seven years, may be granted 

 by his majesty, on a recommendation of the judicial 

 committee of the privy council, who may call and 

 examine witnesses in the case of a petition for ex- 

 tension. This is decidedly an improvement : the 

 term of fourteen years granted indiscriminately by 

 every patent, is too short, in some cases, to render 

 any profit to an inventor, and this chiefly in those 

 inventions of great value which require time to in- 

 troduce. We may instance Watt's improvements on 

 the steam-engine, which, from prejudice and other 

 causes, were hardly in general use when the term 

 granted by his patent expired. By the old act, no 

 extension could be obtained without an application 

 to parliament, which was attended with so many 

 difficulties that it has been rarely resorted to. 



The fifth and sixth clauses refer to the manner of 

 conducting trials for infringement of patent rights, 

 and regulate the costs in such actions. The last 

 clause inflicts a penalty upon any person putting the 



name or mark of a patentee upon any article with- 

 out his permission. 



Here follows a more detailed abridgment of the 

 act. An act to amend the Law touching Letters 

 Patent for Inventions. [5 and 6 Will. IV. c. 83. 

 10th September, 1835.] 



1. Reciting that it is expedient to make certain 

 additions to and alterations in the present law touch- 

 ing letters patent for inventions, as well for the bet- 

 ter protecting of patentees in their rights, as for the 

 more ample benefit of the public : enacts, that any 

 person having obtained letters patent for any inven- 

 tion may enter with the clerk of the patents of Eng- 

 land, Scotland, or Ireland, respectively, as the case 

 may be, having first obtained the leave of his 

 majesty's attorney-general, or solicitor-general, in 

 case of an English patent, of the lord-advocate or 

 solicitor-general of Scotland in the case of a Scotch 

 patent, or of his majesty's attorney-general or solici 

 tor-general for Ireland in the case of an Irish pa- 

 tent, certified by his fiat and signature, a disclaimer 

 of any part of his specification, or a memorandum 

 of any alteration therein, not being such as shall 

 extend the exclusive right granted by the said let- 

 ters patent ; and which, when filed, shall be deemed 

 part of such specification ; but a caveat may be 

 entered as heretofore; and such disclaimer shall 

 not affect actions pending at the time ; and the 

 attorney-general may require the party to advertise 

 his disclaimer. 



2. Where a patentee is proved not to be the real 

 inventor, though he believed himself to be so, he 

 may petition his majesty in council to con6rm his 

 letters patent, or grant new ones ; and the said peti- 

 tion shall be heard before the judicial committee of 

 the privy council, who, on being satisfied that such 

 patentee believed himself to be the first and original 

 inventor, and that such invention had not been gen- 

 erally used before the date of such first letters pa- 

 tent, may report their opinion that the prayer of such 

 petition ought to be complied with, whereupon his 

 majesty may, if he think fit, grant such prayer ; but 

 any person opposing such petition shall be entitled 

 to be heard before the said judicial committee : and 

 any person, party to any former suit touching such 

 first letters patent, shall have notice of such petition. 



3. If any action or suit, a verdict or decree, shall 

 pass for the patentee, the judge may grant a certifi- 

 cate, which being given in evidence in any other 

 suit, shall entitle the patentee, upon a verdict in his 

 favour, to receive treble costs. 



4. Allows a patentee, on advertising as therein 

 mentioned, to apply to the privy council for a pro- 

 longed term. If the judicial committee report in 

 his favour, his term may be prolonged for seven 

 years ; but such application must be made before the 

 expiration of the original term. 



5. In case of action, &c., notice of objections to 

 be given with the pleadings. 



6. Costs in actions for infringing letters patent, to 

 be given as either party has succeeded or failed in 

 any part of his case, without regard to the general 

 result of the trial. 



7. Penalty for using, unauthorized, the name or 

 device of a patentee, c., ^650, one half to his ma- 

 jesty, and the other to any informer. 



Mr Farey, who has had much experience in super- 

 intending the taking of patents, states, that the 

 average expense of a patent for England, may be 

 estimated at .120; for Scotland, at .100; and 

 for Ireland, 125. 



PATERA ; a small dish or vase, in which the Greeks 



and "Romans offered libations of wine to the gods at 



festivals and sacrifices, and in which they received 



the blood of offered victims. It was also a mark of 



2s. 2 



