Patents Act 1949

29 Amendment of specification with leave of comptroller

(1) Subject to the provisions of section thirty-one of this Act, the comptroller may, upon application made under this section by a patentee, or by an applicant for a patent at any time after the acceptance of the complete specification, allow the complete specification to be amended subject to such conditions, if any, as the comptroller thinks fit:

Provided that the comptroller shall not allow a specification to be amended under this section upon an application made while any action before the court for infringement of the patent or any proceeding before the court for the revocation of the patent is pending.

(2) Every application for leave to amend a specification under this section shall state the nature of the proposed amendment and shall give full particulars of the reasons for which the application is made.

(3) Any application for leave to amend a specification under this section, and the nature of the proposed amendment, shall be advertised in the prescribed manner :

Provided that where the application is made before the publication of the complete specification, the comptroller may, if he thinks fit, dispense with advertisement under this subsection or direct that advertisement shall be postponed until the complete specification is published.

(4) Within the prescribed period after the advertisement of an application under this section, any person may give notice to the comptroller of opposition thereto; and where such a notice is given within the period aforesaid, the comptroller shall notify the person by whom the application under this section is made and shall give to that person and to the opponent an opportunity to be heard before he decides the case.

(5) An appeal shall lie from any decision of the comptroller under this section.

(6) This section shall not apply in relation to any amendment ol a specification effected in proceedings in opposition to the grant of a patent or on a reference to the comptroller of a dispute as to the infringement or validity of a claim, or effected in pursuance of any provision of this Act authorising the comptroller to direct a reference to another specification or patent to be inserted, or to refuse to grant a patent, or to revoke a patent, unless the specification is amended to his satisfaction.