Compulsory Licenses And Issues Related To It

Introduction

In general, a patent confers on its owner when granted, during the term of protection, the exclusive rights to prevent third parties from making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing of the patented invention without his/her authorization within the territory of the country/region where the patent is in effect. Also, patent owners have the right to assign and conclude licensing contracts in respect of their invention. Such licenses that are granted by the patent owners are considered "voluntary" licenses. Under certain circumstances and conditions, depending on a term used in a specific jurisdiction, a so-called "compulsory" or "non-voluntary" license may be granted by a competent national authority to a third party allowing the exploitation of the patented invention during the patent term without the authorization of the patentee. In particular, under a compulsory license authorization, a court or another competent authority grants specific