224 KKPORT— 1881. 



Ohligato)'y Licenses. — The Bill would compel a patentee to grant 

 licenses in cases where it could be clearly shown that the invention was 

 not being worked in such a way as to supply the reasonable wants of the 

 public ; but the clause has been so worded as to prevent any improper 

 interference with the rights of the patentee over what is considered to be 

 his own private property. 



Trial of Patent Cases. — The Bill would provide for the trial of patent 

 cases in an entirely new manner. They would be tried, in the first 

 instance, before one of the Commissioners, and an appeal would lie to the 

 whole body. The Commissionere would have power to call in assessors, 

 and would have such other powers as would enable them to try the cases 

 fully. It is hoped that this would greatly simplify the patent litigation, 

 and would prevent the enormous expense which is now incurred by having 

 to bring complicated questions of law and fact before a jury, who are 

 probably ignorant of the scientific or mechanical considerations involved. 

 It may be noted that one great source of expense is the preparation of 

 models, which are only necessary to illustrate mechanical questions to 

 persons unaccustomed to deal with such questions. For experts in such 

 matters, drawings would be sufficient ; indeed, an engineer would generally 

 much prefer proper drawings to any model of a machine. 



Antidpation. — It is proposed that a mere publication more than thirty 

 years old, unaccompanied by use within the thirty years, should not be 

 considered sufficient to invalidate a patent. The object of this is to 

 remove the hardship, which now not infrequently occurs, of a patent being 

 invalidated, or a patentee being put to great expense in order to prove 

 his claim, by the discovery of some ancient and probably incomplete 

 description, a description which in many cases could not have been put 

 into operation at the time it was made for want of necessary appliances to 

 carry it into effect. 



Patents to Foreigners. — It is proposed that patents should be granted 

 to foreigners, or persons resident abi'oad, on precisely the same terms as 

 those on which they are granted to British subjects resident in the 

 United Kingdom. At present patents are granted to British subjects 

 in respect of communications from abroad ; that is to say, the theory is, 

 a person travelling abroad sees a useful invention, brings it home, and 

 patents it in England, such person not being, in any sense, the inventor. 

 In jiractice, patents for communications from abroad are nearly always 

 taken out by patent agents, whoso clients arc resident out of the country, 

 and the patent, as soon as it is taken out, is assigned to the real foreign 

 inventor. Cases of injustice have occurred through the action of this 

 system, in which a patent has been granted to a person who had no moral 

 right to it, but who anticipated the original inventor in obtaining the 

 English patent. 



Effect of Foreign Patents on English Patents. — At present an English 

 patent lapses at the expiration of any foreign patent taken out by the 

 same inventor for the same invention. It is proposed in the Bill that 

 English patents should not in any way be affected by foreign patents. 



The Committee request that they may be re-appointed, in order to 

 watch the progress of this Bill through Parliament, as well as that of 

 any other Bill for the amendment of the Patent Law which may be 

 introduced. 



The Committee have not expended any of the sum of 51. placed at 

 their disposal last year, but they would be glad to have the grant 

 renewed. 



