beyond the disclosure made in the original application, on the basis of which the patent has
been granted. Otherwise those amendments shall be without effect.
Article 36: Invalidation of a patent
Any interested person may request the competent court to invalidate a patent.
The competent court shall invalidate the patent if the person requesting the invalidation
proves that one of the requirements of paragraph (2) and (8) of article 5, articles 14 to 18, 25
and 26, has not been satisfied, or if the patent owner is not the inventor or his rightful
claimant.
When the grounds for invalidation are established with respect only to a part of the invention,
only the corresponding claim or claims shall be invalidated.
Any invalidated patent, or any claim, or part of claims thereof, shall be regarded as null and
void from the date of the grant of the patent and shall be deemed as if it had never been
granted.
The final decision of the competent court shall be notified to the empowered authority which
shall record it in the register of patents and shall publish a reference thereto within a period of
thirty (30) days.
Article 37: Transfer of patent
In the event a dispute over the rights relating to the patent arises, the interested person who
won the case may ask the ccompetent tribunal to transfer the title to him instead of
invalidating it.
SECTION 5: RIGHTS CONFERRED BY THE PATENT AND ITS DURATION
Article 38: Rights conferred by the patent
The patent shall confer on the owner the exclusive right to use an invention in the Republic of
Rwanda. The use of the patented invention by any person other than the patent owner shall
require the owner’s consent.
In this Law, “use” of a patented invention shall mean any of the following acts:
1°
where the patent has been granted in respect of a product:
a)
b)
making, importing, offering for sale, selling and using the product;
stocking such product for the purposes of offering it for sale, selling it or using it;
2°
where the patent has been granted in respect of a process:
a)
using the process;
b)
carrying out the acts referred to in paragraph 2(1) of this article above as regards a
product resulting directly from the use of the process;