A niche blog dedicated to the issues that arise when supplementary protection certificates (SPCs) extend patents beyond their normal life -- and to the respective positions of patent owners, investors, competitors and consumers. The blog also addresses wider issues that may be of interest or use to those involved in the extension of patent rights. You can email The SPC Blog here

Thursday 9 February 2012

Offshore SPCs: what's the position of Guernsey and Jersey?

The Channel Island States of Guernsey have been in the IP news headlines recently. Yesterday Guernsey announced publication of its draft proposals for a registrable Image Right.  Today, The SPC Blog has received a reader's question specifically relating to that charming holiday isle with a lightly-taxed population of just some 65,000 souls:
"Does a United Kingdom SPC automatically extend to a registration of the corresponding basic patent in Guernsey and/or Jersey?"
Any thoughts would be much appreciated, particularly if they can point or link to any explicit legislation -- and don't write in to say that, given the location of Guernsey and Jersey, it would be easier to extend a neighbourly French SPC than a more distant UK one ...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The 2009 Patents Ordinance, Schedule 3 gives the Guernsey registrar a power to extend patents where there's an SPC. The exact provision needs reading to see what it actually does - it's not quite that simple.