Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

PATENTS ACT 1990 - SECT 201

Individuals

  (1)   An individual commits an offence if:

  (a)   the individual carries on business, practises or acts as a patent attorney; and

  (b)   the individual is not a registered patent attorney or a legal practitioner.

Penalty:   30 penalty units.

  (2)   An individual commits an offence if:

  (a)   the individual describes himself or herself, or holds himself or herself out, or permits himself or herself to be described or held out, as a patent attorney or agent for obtaining patents; and

  (b)   the individual is not a registered patent attorney.

Penalty:   30 penalty units.

Partnerships

  (3)   A member of a partnership commits an offence if:

  (a)   the member carries on business, practises or acts as a patent attorney; and

  (b)   none of the members of the partnership is a registered patent attorney or a legal practitioner.

Penalty:   30 penalty units.

  (4)   A member of a partnership commits an offence if:

  (a)   the member describes the partnership, or holds the partnership out, or permits the partnership to be described or held out, as a patent attorney, or agent for obtaining patents; and

  (b)   none of the members of the partnership is a registered patent attorney.

Penalty:   30 penalty units.

Companies

  (5)   A company commits an offence if:

  (a)   the company carries on business, practises or acts as a patent attorney; and

  (b)   the company is not a registered patent attorney or incorporated legal practice.

Penalty:   150 penalty units.

  (6)   A company commits an offence if:

  (a)   the company describes itself, or holds itself out, or permits itself to be described or held out, as a patent attorney, or agent for obtaining patents; and

  (b)   the company is not a registered patent attorney.

Penalty:   150 penalty units.

Exception--legal representatives

  (7)   Subsections   (1), (3) and (5) do not apply in relation to the business of a registered patent attorney who is deceased if the business:

  (a)   is carried on, within 3 years of the death of the patent attorney, or such further time allowed by a prescribed court, by the legal representative of the deceased registered patent attorney; and

  (b)   is managed by a registered patent attorney on behalf of the legal representative.

Note:   The defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in subsection   (7). See subsection   13.3(3) of the Criminal Code .

Exception--employees

  (8)   Subsections   (1) and (2) do not apply in relation to anything done by a person, as an employee, for:

  (a)   his or her employer; or

  (b)   if the person's employer is a member of a related company group--another member of the group.

Note:   The defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matters in subsection   (8). See subsection   13.3(3) of the Criminal Code .

Exception--related company groups

  (9)   Subsections   (5) and (6) do not apply in relation to anything done by a member of a related company group for another member of the group.

Note:   The defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection   (9). See subsection   13.3(3) of the Criminal Code .

Whether a company is related to another company

  (10)   For the purposes of this section, the question of whether a company is related to another company is to be determined in the same manner as that question is determined under the Corporations Act 2001 .