Book VI: Protection of inventions and technical knowledge

I.-The holder’s right does not extend to: 1° Acts performed on a private basis for non-professional or non-commercial purposes; 2° Acts performed on an experimental basis; 3° Acts performed for the purpose of creating a new variety or acts referred to in I of Article L. 623-4 relating to that new variety, unless III and IV of that same Article are applicable. II.-The proprietor’s right does not extend to acts…

I. – Where reproductive or vegetative propagating material or a harvested product has been sold or made available to third parties in any form whatsoever by the breeder or with his consent, for the purposes of exploitation of the variety, for more than twelve months on French territory or on the territory of the European Economic Area, the variety shall not be deemed to be new. Where such sale by…

A plant variety certificate may be applied for by any person who is a national of a State party to the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants and by any person who is a national of a Member State of the European Community or who has his domicile, registered office or place of business in one of those States. The person applying for a plant variety…

The certificate issued by the body mentioned in Article L. 412-1 takes effect on the date of the application. Reasons must be given for any decision rejecting an application.

The Minister responsible for defence is authorised to take cognisance of certificate applications from the body referred to in Article L. 412-1, on a confidential basis.

The list of plant species whose new varieties which are the subject of certificate applications may not be disclosed and freely exploited without special authorisation shall be laid down by regulation. Subject to article L. 623-10, this authorisation may be granted at any time. It is acquired ipso jure at the end of a period of five months from the day on which the application for a certificate is lodged.

Before the end of the period provided for in the last paragraph of article L. 623-9, the bans prescribed in the first paragraph of the said article may be extended, at the request of the Minister for Defence, for a renewable period of one year. Extended bans may be lifted at any time under the same condition. The extension of bans imposed under this article entitles the holder of the…

The certificate holder may request a review of the compensation provided for in Article L. 623-10, after the expiry of the one-year period following the date of the final judgment setting the amount of compensation. The certificate holder must provide proof that the loss it has suffered exceeds the court’s estimate.

The certificate shall only be issued if a prior examination shows that the variety for which protection is sought constitutes a new plant variety in accordance with Article L. 623-2. However, the body referred to in Article L. 412-1 may consider as sufficient the prior examination carried out in another State party to the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants. The same body may take into…

The term of protection shall be twenty-five years from the date of grant. For forest, fruit or ornamental trees, vines and perennial forage grasses and legumes, potatoes and inbred lines used for the production of hybrid varieties, the term of protection shall be thirty years. .