Use of patented inventions by Government and authorised parties
56.—(1) Subject to sections 60, 61 and 62, but despite any other section of this Act, the Government and any party authorised in writing by the Government may do anything in relation to a patented invention —(a)
for a public non-commercial purpose; or
(b)
for or during a national emergency or other circumstances of extreme urgency,
and anything done by virtue of this section does not amount to an infringement of the patent.
[18/2008]
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), subject to sections 60, 61 and 62, but despite any other section of this Act, the Government and any party authorised in writing by the Government may import any relevant health product, and do anything in relation to any relevant health product so imported, for or during a national emergency or other circumstances of extreme urgency, if the Government has given the Council for TRIPS a relevant notification in relation to the relevant health product.[18/2008]
(3) For the purposes of this section and section 57 —(a)
any use of an invention for the supply to the government of any country outside Singapore, pursuant to any agreement or arrangement between the Government of Singapore and the government of that country, of articles required for the defence of that country is deemed to be a use of the invention for a public non‑commercial purpose; and
(b)
the power of the Government or any party authorised by the Government to do anything in accordance with this section does not, in the case of a patent relating to an integrated circuit, extend to sale of the invention to the public.
(4) The purchaser of any article sold in the exercise of the powers conferred by this section, and any person claiming through the purchaser, has power to deal with it in the same manner as if the patent were held on behalf of the Government.
(5) In this section —“integrated circuit” means a product, in its final or an intermediate form, in which the elements, at least one of which is an active element, and some or all of the interconnections are integrally formed in and on, or in or on, a piece of material and which is intended to perform an electronic function;
“relevant notification” means a notification that satisfies the requirements of —(a)
paragraph 2(a) of the Doha Declaration Implementation Decision; or
(b)
paragraph 2(a) of the Annex to the TRIPS Agreement.[18/2008]
Rights of third parties in respect of Government use
57.—(1) In relation to —(a)
anything done in accordance with section 56 by the Government or any party authorised in writing by the Government; or
(b)
anything done to the order of the Government —(i)
for a public non-commercial purpose; or
(ii)
for or during a national emergency or other circumstances of extreme urgency,
by the proprietor of a patent in respect of the patented invention or by the proprietor of an application for a patent in respect of the invention for which the application has been filed and is still pending,
the provisions of any licence, assignment or agreement to which this subsection applies, subject to sections 60, 61 and 62, are of no effect so far as those provisions restrict or regulate the working of the invention, or the use of any model, document or information relating to it, or provide for the making of payments in respect of, or calculated by reference to, such working or use.
(2) The reproduction or publication of any model or document in connection with the said working or use is not to be deemed to be an infringement of any copyright or design right subsisting in the model or document.
(3) Subsection (1) applies to any licence, assignment or agreement which is made, whether before or after 23 February 1995, between (on the one hand) any person who is a proprietor of or an applicant for the patent, or anyone who derives title from any such person or from whom such person derives title, and (on the other hand) any person other than the Government.
References of disputes as to Government use
58.—(1) Any dispute as to the exercise by the Government or a party authorised by the Government of the powers conferred by, or as to the terms for doing anything in accordance with, section 56 may be referred to the court by either party to the dispute after a patent has been granted for the invention.
(2) In determining any dispute referred to the court under this section, the court is to have regard to —(a)
any benefit or compensation that the patentee of the invention may have received, or may be entitled to receive, directly or indirectly, from the Government or any party authorised by the Government in respect of the patented invention; and
(b)
the need to ensure that the patentee receives reasonable remuneration having regard to the economic value of the patented invention.
(3) If the validity of a patent is put in issue in proceedings under this section and it is found that the patent is only partially valid, the court may, subject to subsection (4), grant relief to the proprietor of the patent in respect of that part of the patent which is found to be valid and to have been used in accordance with section 56.
(4) Where in any such proceedings it is found that a patent is only partially valid, the court is not to grant relief by way of costs or expenses except where the proprietor of the patent proves that the specification of the patent was framed in good faith and with reasonable skill and knowledge, and in that event the court may grant relief in respect of that part of the patent which is valid and has been so used, subject to the discretion of the court as to costs and expenses.
(5) As a condition of any such relief, the court may direct that the specification of the patent be amended to its satisfaction upon an application made for that purpose under section 83, and an application may be so made accordingly, whether or not all other issues in the proceedings have been determined.
(6) In any proceedings under this section, the court may at any time order the whole proceedings or any question or issue of fact arising in them to be referred, on such terms as the court may direct, to an arbitrator; and references to the court in this section are to be construed accordingly.
(7) One of the 2 or more joint proprietors of a patent or an application for a patent may, without the concurrence of the others, refer a dispute to the court under this section, but must not do so unless the others are made parties to the proceedings; but any of the others if made a defendant shall not be liable for any costs or expenses unless the defendant files and serves a notice of intention to contest or not contest and takes part in the proceedings.[Act 25 of 2021 wef 01/04/2022]
Nature and scope of rights under section 56
60.—(1) The right to use a patented invention under section 56 —(a)
is not exclusive;
(b)
must not be assigned otherwise than in connection with the goodwill of the business in which the patented invention is used; and
(c)
is, despite subsection (3)(a) of section 56, limited to the supply of the patented invention predominantly in Singapore by the Government or a party authorised by the Government under that section.
(2) The right under section 56 to use a relevant health product which is imported under section 56(2) does not include a right to export the relevant health product.[18/2008]
(3) The right to use a patented invention under section 56 may, on the application of any interested party, be terminated by the court, where the court is satisfied that the circumstances that gave rise to the right to use the patented invention have ceased to exist and are unlikely to recur.
(4) Where the court has terminated the right under section 56 to use a patented invention, the court may make such consequential orders as it thinks necessary.[18/2008]
Duty to inform patentee
61.—(1) Where any thing set out in section 66(1) is done in relation to a patented invention by the Government or a party authorised in writing by the Government for a public non-commercial purpose, the Government department that did or authorised the doing of the thing must inform the patentee promptly of the doing of the thing.
(2) Where any thing set out in section 66(1) is done in relation to a patented invention by the Government or a party authorised in writing by the Government for or during a national emergency or other circumstances of extreme urgency, the Government department that did or authorised the doing of the thing must, as soon as reasonably practicable, inform the patentee of the doing of the thing.
Patentee entitled to remuneration
62.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), where an act is done under section 56, the Government must pay such remuneration to the patentee as may be agreed, or as may be determined by a method agreed, between the Government and the patentee having regard to the economic value of the patented invention or as may, in default of agreement, be determined by the court under section 58.[18/2008]
(2) No remuneration is payable under subsection (1) in respect of the import or subsequent use under section 56(2) of any relevant health product, if the patentee has received or will receive any other remuneration in respect of that relevant health product.[18/2008]
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
