Article 195-3 (Exclusion of application of Administrative Procedures Act) – Patent Act

Article 195-3 (Exclusion of application of Administrative Procedures Act)

Chapters II and III of the Administrative Procedures Act(Act No. 88 of 1993) shall not apply to dispositions under this Act or an order issued under this Act. Article 195-4(Restriction on appeals under Administrative Appeal Act) No appeal shall be available under the Administrative Appeal Act against an examiner’s decision or a trial decision, or a ruling to dismiss a written request for a trial or retrial, or against dispositions against which no appeal lies in accordance with this Act.

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Article 195-2 (Reduction of or exemption from fees for request for examination of application) – Patent Act

Article 195-2 (Reduction of or exemption from fees for request for examination of application)

Where the Commissioner of the Patent Office recognizes that a person meets the requirements of Cabinet Order to be recognized as a person with insufficient funds, and that the person has difficulties paying the fees for a request for the examination of an application, the Commissioner of the Patent Office may, in accordance with Cabinet Order, grant the person a reduction of or exemption from the payment of the fees for the request for the examination of the person’s own patent application payable under Article 195(2), where the Commissioner of the Patent Office recognizes that the person falls under any of the following paragraphs:

(i) the inventor of the invention or the inventor’s heir; and
(ii) the employer, etc., who has succeeded to the right to obtain a patent from the employee, etc., where the invention is an invention by the employee, etc., under Article 35(1) and where it is provided in advance in any stipulations including contract or employment rules that the employer, etc. shall succeed to the right to obtain a patent.

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Article 195 (Fees) – Patent Act

Article 195 (Fees)

(1) Fees shall be paid by the following persons in an amount to be provided by Cabinet Order in view of the actual costs:

(i) persons filing a request for an extension of the duration under Article 4, 5(1), 108(3), or a change of the date under Article 5(2);
(ii) persons filing a request for the re-issuance of the certificate of patent;
(iii) persons notifying of succession under Article 34(4);
(iv) persons filing a request for the issuance of a certificate under Article 186(1);
(v) persons filing a request for the issuance of a certified copy of documents or an extract of documents under Article 186(1);
(vi) persons filing a request to allow the inspection or copying of documents under Article 186(1); and
(vii) persons filing a request for the issuance of documents whose contents are stored on the magnetic tapes that constitute the part of the Patent Registry under Article 186(1).

(2) The persons listed in the center column of the attached table shall pay fees in the amount as provided by Cabinet Order within the range of the amounts specified in the corresponding right-hand column of the table.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, where, after a request for the examination of an application has been filed by a person who is not the applicant of the patent, the number of claims is increased due to the amendment of the scope of claims attached to the application in the said patent application, the fees for the request for the examination of the patent application payable under the preceding paragraph regarding the increased claims shall be paid by the applicant of the patent.

(4) The three preceding paragraphs shall not apply where the person to pay the fee in accordance with these paragraphs is the State.

(5) Where the State has joint ownership of a patent right or a right to obtain a patent with a person other than the State, and the portion of their respective shares of the said right has been agreed, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) or (2), the fees payable thereunder (limited to those provided by Cabinet Order excluding the fees for the request for an examination) shall be determined as the sum of the provided fees multiplied by the ratios of the share of each person other than the State, and, the person(s) other than the State shall pay such sum.

(6) Where the State has joint ownership of a right to obtain a patent with person(s) including a person entitled to receive a reduction of the fees for the request for an examination or exemption therefrom under the following Article or provisions of any other laws and ordinances (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as a “reduction/exemption”), and the portion of their respective shares of the said right has been agreed, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (2), the fees for the request for an examination payable by such person for their right to obtain a patent thereunder shall be determined as the sum of the amounts calculated for each person other than the State jointly owning the right, by multiplying the applicable fees for the request for an examination provided thereunder (in the case of a person who receives the reduction or exemption, the amount after the said reduction/exemption) by the ratios of the share of each person other than the State, and the person(s) other than the State shall pay such sum.

(7) Where the amount of the fees calculated under the two preceding paragraphs has a fractional figure of less than ten yen, the said portion shall be discarded.

(8) The payment of the fees under paragraphs (1) to (3) shall be made by patent revenue stamps as provided by Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and industry; provided, however, that where so provided by Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, a cash payment thereof shall be accepted.

(9) After the request for examination of an application, where the said patent application has been waived or withdrawn, upon the request of the person who paid the fees for the request for examination under paragraph(2), such fees in the amount prescribed by Cabinet Order shall be refunded, provided that the certified copy of the examiner’s decision has not been served, and none of the following orders or notices has been made.

(i) an order under Article 39(7);
(ii) notice under Article 48-7;
(iii) notice under Article 50; and
(iv) service of a certified copy of the examiner’s decision under Article 52 (2).

(10) No request for a refund of fees under the preceding paragraph may be filed after six months from the date on which a patent application has been waived or withdrawn.

(11) Fees paid in excess or in error shall be refunded upon the request of the person who made payment thereof.

(12) No request for a refund of the fees under the preceding paragraph may be filed after one year from the date on which the payment thereof has been made.

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Article 194 (Submission of documents, etc.) – Patent Act

Article 194 (Submission of documents, etc.)

(1) The Commissioner of the Patent Office or the examiner may request a party in a case to submit documents or other materials necessary for a procedure other than one relating to a trial or a retrial.

(2) The Commissioner of the Patent Office or the examiner may commission related administrative agencies, educational institutions or any other organizations to conduct an investigation necessary for an examination.

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Article 193 (Patent Gazette) – Patent Act

Article 193 (Patent Gazette)

(1) The Patent Office shall publish the patent gazette (Tokkyo Koho).

(2) In addition to the matters provided for in this Act, the patent gazette shall contain:

(i) the examiner’s decision to the effect that an application is to be refused, or the waiver, withdrawal or dismissal of a patent application after the laying open of the patent application, or the withdrawal of an application for the registration of an extension of the duration of a patent right;

(ii) successions to the right to obtain a patent after the laying open of a patent application;

(iii) amendments of the description, scope of claims or drawings attached to an application under Article 17-2(1) after the laying open of a patent application (in the case of an amendment under any of the items in the proviso to the said paragraph, limited to an amendment made through the submission of a statement of correction of an incorrect translation);

(iv) the extinguishment of patent rights (excluding extinguishment upon expiration of the duration and under Article 112(4) or 112(5)) or the restoration thereof(limited to restoration under Article 112-2(2));

(v) filings for a request for trials or retrials, or withdrawals thereof;

(vi) final and binding trial decisions or retrial decisions (limited to patent applications in which the establishment of a patent right has been registered or which have been laid open);

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Article 192 – Patent Act

Article 192

(1) Where an overseas resident has a patent administrator, service shall be made to the patent administrator.

(2) Where an overseas resident has no patent administrator, documents may be dispatched by registered mail, etc. (refers to service of registered mail under Article 2(2) of the Act on service of Mail by Private Business Operator (Act No. 99 of 2002) provided by a general mail delivery service operator under Article 2(6) of the said Act or by a special mail delivery service operator under Article 2(9) of the said Act that is equivalent to registered mail by Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, hereinafter the same shall apply in paragraph (3)).

(3) Where documents are dispatched by registered mail, etc., under the preceding paragraph, the documents shall be deemed to have been served at the time of dispatch.

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Article 191 – Patent Act

Article 191

(1) Where the domicile or residence of the person who is to be served or any other place to which service is to be made is unknown, or where the service is unable to be effected under Article 107(1) (excluding items (ii) and (iii)) of the Code of Civil Procedure as applied mutatis mutandis under Article 190 of this Act, service may be effected by public notification.

(2) Service by public notification shall be effected by publishing in the Official Gazette and the patent gazette and posting on the noticeboard of the Patent Office a notification stating the fact that documents to be served are ready to be served at any time to the person who is to be served.

(3) Service by public notification shall take effect following the duration of 20 days from the day the notification is published in the Official Gazette.

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Article 190 – Patent Act

Article 190

Articles 98(2), 99 to 103, 105, 106, 107(1) (excluding items (ii) and (iii)), 107(3) and 109 (Service) of the Code of Civil Procedure shall apply mutatis mutandis to the service of documents as provided in this Act or Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry under the preceding Article. In this case, the term “a court clerk” in Articles 98(2) and 100 of the Code of Civil Procedure shall be deemed to be replaced with “an official designated by the Commissioner of the Patent Office or a trial clerk”, the term “mail or court enforcement officer” in Article 99(1) of the said Act shall be deemed to be replaced with “mail”, the term “where … the court clerk” in Article 107(1) of the said Act shall be deemed to be replaced with “where … and where documents concerning the examination are to be served, an official designated by the Commissioner of the Patent Office or a trial clerk” and the term “Supreme Court Rules” in Article 107(1) of the said Act shall be deemed to be replaced with “an Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry”.

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Article 189 (Service) – Patent Act

Article 189 (Service)

Documents to be served shall be as provided in this Act and by ordinance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

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Article 188 (Prohibition of false marking) – Patent Act

Article 188 (Prohibition of false marking)

It shall be prohibited for a person to do the following acts:

(i) putting a mark of patent or a mark confusing therewith on or in a non-patented product or the packaging thereof;

(ii) assigning, etc. or displaying for the purpose of assignment, etc. a non-patented product or the packaging thereof on or in which a mark of a patent or a mark confusing therewith is put;

(iii) giving in an advertisement an indication to the effect that a non-patented product is related to a patent or an indication confusing therewith for the purpose of having the product produced or used, or assigning, etc. the product; or

(iv) giving in an advertisement an indication to the effect that a non-patented process is related to a patent or an indication confusing therewith for the purpose of having the process used, or assigning or leasing the process.

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