Industrial Property Law

Actions to claim ownership are time-barred after five years  from publication of the industrial property title (Article L. 611-8, paragraph 2, IP Code). However, in the event of bad faith at the time of issue or acquisition of the title, the applicable period of limitation is five years from the expiry of the title (Article L. 611-8, para. 3, IP Code).
Bad faith on the part of the patent applicant …

Statute of limitations

Actions to claim ownership are time-barred after five years  from publication of the industrial property title (Article L. 611-8, paragraph 2, IP Code). However, in the event of bad faith at the time of issue or acquisition of the title, the applicable period of limitation is five years from the expiry of the title (Article L. 611-8, para. 3, IP Code).

Bad faith on the part of the patent applicant is not deemed to exist where it is not established that the latter acted in such a way as to conceal the filing of the patent application from the claimant or to dissuade or prevent him from asserting his rights, that the claimant was aware of the existence of the application and that he could exercise his right to act well before the expiry of the prescribed period . However, the claimant in an action to enforce a patent claim may plead bad faith on the part of the undertaking's director, if the director holds nearly 100% of the undertaking's capital .

The Court of Cassation has also accepted the deferral of the starting point of the limitation period in the event that a court has ordered a transfer of ownership of the title in the context of an earlier action to reclaim title. The period granted to an undertaking which has lost a claim action to bring an action for recovery of its patent runs from the date of notification of the order confirming the judgment of the court which transferred ownership of the disputed patent . On the other hand, a European patent application with a claim to the priority of a French filing does not have the effect of extending the applicable time-limit, which starts to run from the date of publication of the first title .

The inadmissibility of a patent claim on the grounds of limitation applies to any related moral rights claimed .

Prior to Law No 2014-315 of 11 March 2014 reinforcing the fight against IP infringement, the statute of limitations for an action to claim rights of ownership was three years: See in particular Cass. com, 24 February 1998, LawLex202200000635JBJ; CA Colmar, 11 September 2012, LawLex202200010617JBJ; TGI Paris, 9 February 2012, LawLex202200010616JBJ; CA Bordeaux, 10 June 2010, LawLex202200010608JBJ.

CA Paris, 9 February 2012, LawLex202200010616JBJ.

Cass. com., 8 July 1997, LawLex202200010623JBJ, which considers that the second claim action does not infringe the principle of res judicata, as it is based on the invalidity of a license agreement, whereas the first claim action was based on the breach of a clause in that agreement.

CA Colmar, 11 September 2012, LawLex202200010617JBJ.

Industrial Property Law

297. Statute of limitations

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

297. Statute of limitations

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise