An opposition contests the validity of the patent or the right of a patent holder to the invention. The opposition may lead to the patent being modified, cancelled or transferred to another person. The person submitting an opposition is referred to as the opponent.

Deadline for filing

The closing date for submitting an opposition is nine (9) months from the day when the patent was granted. There is an exception for oppositions that assert that the patent is contrary to public order or morality, cf. Section 1b of the Patents Act. These have an extended closing date and must be filed within three (3) years from the day when the patent was granted.

Price

Oppositions can be filed free of charge, unless you file an opposition on the basis of Section 1b of the Patents Act (contravention of public order or morality) after nine (9) months have passed. You will then have to pay a set fee. See the price list.

You can file an opposition in the following cases

• If you believe that the patent is not valid, because the conditions specified in Sections 1 to 2 of the Patents Act are not met.
• If you believe that the invention is not described sufficiently clearly for a person skilled in the art to execute it, cf Section 8, second paragraph, third to fifth sentence.
• If you believe the patent includes something that did not appear in the application when it was filed, cf. Section 13 of the Patents Act.
• If you believe that the patent has been granted to the wrong person, cf. Section 1 of the Patents Act.
• If you believe that the patent is contrary to public order or morality, cf Section 1b of the Patents Act.

The opposition must be justified, and the justification should be supported for example by publications. 

How to write an opposition

There are some formal requirements that must be met before the Norwegian Industrial Property Office can process the objection.

1. It must be in writing.
2. It must be in Norwegian, Danish or Swedish.
3. It must be received at the Norwegian Industrial Property Office within nine (9) months after the patent to which the opposition relates was granted.
4. The person who believes that he or she should have the right to the patent must himself or herself (personally or by using a representative) file the opposition.
5. The opposition must be signed by the person submitting the opposition or the latter's representative.

The opposition must contain:

1. Name and address of the person submitting the opposition, and name and address of the representative if you are using one.
2. The number of the patent to which the opposition relates.
3. An explanation as to why you believe the patent to be invalid or to have been granted to the wrong person.
4. Necessary documentation to substantiate the opposition.
5. Power of attorney if a representative is used, unless the representative is a solicitor or trainee solicitor and represents the person submitting the opposition personally.

If the opposition does not fulfil the requirements that it must be filed in writing, received within the time limit of nine (9) months and be substantiated on filing, the opposition will be rejected. It will then not be processed.

If the opposition does not fulfil the formal requirements, the Norwegian Industrial Property Office will send a letter specifying a deadline of one (1) month to rectify the deficiencies. If you do not rectify the deficiencies within the time limit we will reject the opposition.

If power of attorney is not supplied, all further communication will take place directly with the opponent.

To submit an objection to the Norwegian Industrial Property Office, we recommend using our form for correspondence in Altinn. If you can not use Altinn for various reasons, you can send an e-mail to post@patentstyret.no.

Processing of opposition

When the Norwegian Industrial Property Office has received an opposition, this is sent to the holder of the patent. The response deadline for patent holders is three months and two weeks after the objection deadline expires.

The general rule is that the opponent and the patent holder may each make a statement once before a decision is made. The actual statement of oppostion counts as one  statement. Once the patent holder has responded, we will consider whether further statements from the parties are necessary. This only happens in exceptional cases.

The Norwegian Industrial Property Office may also take into account matters that have not been addressed in the opposition (for example new cited references), but in that case we will give the parties the opportunity to comment on this before we make a decision.

When the Norwegian Industrial Property Office believes that the case is sufficiently informed, we send a letter to the parties stating that the case is taken up for decision, and we then decide the case in a committee consisting of three people.

The assessment in an objection is independent of the assessment made when the patent was granted. This means that the committee that is to process the objection has not taken part in previous processing of the patent application.

Possible outcomes in the processing of an opposition

• The opposition is rejected, so that the granted patent is upheld in unchanged form.
• The opposition is successful, the patent is cancelled.
• The opposition is partially successful, the patent is upheld is amended form.
• The opposition is successful and the patent is transferred to the opponent in its entirety, or in the form of an ideal share if the opponent is partially entitled to it.

Appeal against the decision on an opposition

If the opposition or parts of it is or are not successful, the opponent can appeal the decision to the Norwegian Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights (KFIR). If the opposition is wholly or partially successful, the holder can appeal the decision to KFIR. The deadline for appeals is two (2) months from the date when the decision is sent to the parties. To have the appeal considered, you must pay an appeal fee.

If the opposition is based on the patent having been granted to someone other than the person entitled to it under Section 1 of the Patents Act, a possible lawsuit must be filed in the courts within two (2) months after the final decision from the Norwegian Industrial Property Office or KFIR was sent to the parties.

More information about Norwegian Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights (KFIR)
Link to Norwegian Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights (KFIR)

Relevant legislation

• Patents Act Sections 24-27
• Patent Regulations Sections 36-39
• Regulation on Fees Section 30
• Industrial Property Office Act Section 7
• Patent Guidelines - Part D, Chapter II (in Norwegian)

Other appeal options

• Other appeal options for patents