§ 163. — Grant.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 35USC163]
TITLE 35--PATENTS
PART II--PATENTABILITY OF INVENTIONS AND GRANT OF PATENTS
CHAPTER 15--PLANT PATENTS
Sec. 163. Grant
In the case of a plant patent, the grant shall include the right to
exclude others from asexually reproducing the plant, and from using,
offering for sale, or selling the plant so reproduced, or any of its
parts, throughout the United States, or from importing the plant so
reproduced, or any parts thereof, into the United States.
(July 19, 1952, ch. 950, 66 Stat. 804; Pub. L. 105-289, Sec. 3(a), Oct.
27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2781.)
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on Title 35, U.S.C., 1946 ed., Sec. 40, part (R.S. 4884,
amended May 23, 1930, ch. 312, Sec. 1, 46 Stat. 376).
This provision is from R.S. 4884 (see section 154) amended in
language.
Amendments
1998--Pub. L. 105-289 reenacted section catchline without change and
amended text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: ``In
the case of a plant patent the grant shall be of the right to exclude
others from asexually reproducing the plant or selling or using the
plant so reproduced.''
Effective Date of 1998 Amendment
Pub. L. 105-289, Sec. 3(b), Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2781, provided
that: ``The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section]
shall apply to any plant patent issued on or after the date of the
enactment of this Act [Oct. 27, 1998].''
Findings and Purposes
Pub. L. 105-289, Sec. 2, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2780, provided
that:
``(a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
``(1) The protection provided by plant patents under title 35,
United States Code, dating back to 1930, has historically benefited
American agriculture and horticulture and the public by providing an
incentive for breeders to develop new plant varieties.
``(2) Domestic and foreign agricultural trade is rapidly
expanding and is very different from the trade of the past. An
unforeseen ambiguity in the provisions of title 35, United States
Code, is undermining the orderly collection of royalties due
breeders holding United States plant patents.
``(3) Plant parts produced from plants protected by United
States plant patents are being taken from illegally reproduced
plants and traded in United States markets to the detriment of plant
patent holders.
``(4) Resulting lost royalty income inhibits investment in
domestic research and breeding activities associated with a wide
variety of crops--an area where the United States has historically
enjoyed a strong international position. Such research is the
foundation of a strong horticultural industry.
``(5) Infringers producing such plant parts from unauthorized
plants enjoy an unfair competitive advantage over producers who pay
royalties on varieties protected by United States plant patents.
``(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act [see section 1 of Pub. L.
105-289, set out as a Short Title of 1998 Amendments note under section
1 of this title] are--
``(1) to clearly and explicitly provide that title 35, United
States Code, protects the owner of a plant patent against the
unauthorized sale of plant parts taken from plants illegally
reproduced;
``(2) to make the protections provided under such title more
consistent with those provided breeders of sexually reproduced
plants under the Plant Variety Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 2321 et
seq.), as amended by the Plant Variety Protection Act Amendments of
1994 (Public Law 103-349); and
``(3) to strengthen the ability of United States plant patent
holders to enforce their patent rights with regard to importation of
plant parts produced from plants protected by United States plant
patents, which are propagated without the authorization of the
patent holder.''
