Recent Development
On June 30, 2020, the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office ("TPTO") published its implementation guidelines on employee inventions and inventions made in higher education institutions ("Inventions") that are regulated in Section 5 of the Industrial Property Law No. 6769 ("IPL") and the Regulation on Employee Inventions, Inventions Made in Higher Education Institutions and Inventions Generated in Projects Supported by the State No. 30195 ("Regulation").
The Guideline on Employee Inventions and The Implementation Guideline on Inventions Made in Higher Education Institutions ("Guidelines") are available on the TPTO's official website. The Guidelines are published in Turkish.
What Do the Guidelines Regulate?
The TPTO prepared the Guidelines with the participation of the relevant TPTO shareholders and the contributions of working groups. With the Guidelines, the TPTO aims to provide information and guidance about practices related to Inventions regulated by the IPL and the Regulation. The Guidelines do not provide any legal comments on the provisions relating to the Inventions, are not legally binding and are merely advisory.
The Guidelines address several subjects about the Inventions in detail, including but not limited to the following.
- The phrase "report the invention to the employer without delay" regarding the employee's obligation to issue a notification is examined in detail. The Guidelines guide the interpretation of any disputes that may arise in this regard.
- The Guidelines clarify any confusion about the implementation of the amount that is paid.
- The Guidelines clarify uncertainties regarding entitlement among institutions concerning Inventions involving multiple institutions.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, the Guidelines will be important sources in the implementation of the IPL and the Regulation regarding the Inventions. The TPTO will continue to update the Guidelines in the framework of the opinions, suggestions and implementation examples from the relevant TPTO shareholders, with the aim to enrich their content and ensure that the Guidelines are dynamic.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.