Plant Varieties (Proprietary Rights) Act, 1980

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Priorities between applicants under section 4.

6.—(1) Where a plant variety is independently bred or discovered by two or more persons, subject to subsection (2) of this section, the first of those persons by or in relation to whom an application is duly made under section 4 of this Act shall be the person entitled to a grant of plant breeders' rights as regards the variety.

(2) As between two persons duly making applications under section 4 of this Act on the same date as regards the same plant variety, the one who was first in a position to make a valid such application (or would have been first in that position if the said section 4 and the relevant regulations under section 4 of this Act had always been in force) shall be the person entitled to a grant of plant breeders' rights as regards the variety.

(3) Where—

(a) an application (in this subsection referred to as “the first application”) is duly made in a convention country other than the State for the grant, under the law in force in that country, of the rights which correspond to plant breeders' rights, and

(b) within a period of one year commencing on the day immediately following the day on which the first application is received by the appropriate authority in such country, there is duly made as regards the plant variety to which the first application relates an application under section 4 of this Act (in this section referred to as “the second application”), and

(c) at the time when the first application was so received the plant variety to which that application relates was within a genus or species for the time being specified in regulations under section 4 of this Act, and

(d) the second application contains a reference to the first application, specifies the date on which it was so received and requests that the provisions of this subsection be applied as regards the second application, and

(e) before the expiration of the period of three months beginning on the day of the receipt by the Controller of the second application there is received by him a copy of the documents constituting the first application,

the second application shall be regarded as having been received by the Controller on the same day as that on which the first application was received as aforesaid, and, accordingly, the fact that another application under the said section 4 and relating to the same botanical genus or species as that to which both the first and second applications relate has been duly made under the said section 4 within the period, beginning on the day on which the first application was received as aforesaid and ending on the day on which the second application was in fact received by the Controller, shall not be a ground of objection to the second application.

(4) (a) Where the provisions of subsection (3) of this section are applied in relation to an application to the Controller, the applicant shall comply with the requirements of regulations made under paragraph (a) or (b) of section 15 (1) of this Act within the period of four years beginning on the expiration of the period of one year mentioned in subsection (3) (b) of this section or such shorter period as the Controller shall specify in a notice in writing given to the applicant (being a period of not less than one year commencing on the date of the notice).

(b) In case the requirements of paragraph (a) of this subsection are not complied with as regards an application within the appropriate period, on the expiration of that period the provisions of subsection (3) of this section shall cease to apply to the application.

(5) In case the provisions of subsection (1) of this section are applied to an application under section 4 of this Act, the application shall not, at any time during the period of five years beginning on the day immediately following the day on which the application is deemed to have been received by the Controller, be refused by reason only of the fact that any information, document or other thing which either is prescribed or is required by the Controller has not been furnished to him.