The Right To File A Patent Application Ruled In A Invalidation Case

A Vietnamese patent was invalidated due to the fact that one of the inventors did not transfer the right to file the patent application to the applicant (the rest inventor). In Vietnamese Patent No. 21899, granted on Patent Application No. 1-2018-00393 filed 2018, Mr. Nguyen Van Chanh was recorded as the patent owner, with Mr. Nguyen Van Chanh and Mr. Nguyen Van Luong recorded as the two co-inventors. Accordingly, Nguyen Van Chanh is both the inventor and patent owner.

Nguyen Van Luong filed a request for invalidation of the patent with the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IPVN), based on the ground that Nguyen Van Chanh (the recorded patent owner) did not have the right to file the application (one of the statutory grounds for patent invalidation). The IPVN informed Nguyen Van Chanh of the request and he filed arguments against the request.