Patents and utility models are currently governed in Argentina by Law No 24,481 as amended by Laws No 24,572 and No 25,859, and by Regulatory Decree No 260/96.

Unlike many other similar statutes in the world, the Argentine Constitution explicitly sets forth in Article 17 that innovators are entitled to obtain property rights on their inventions. However, the above-mentioned Argentine patent law has some deficiencies and ambiguities and often does not adequately protect patent rights, thus generating considerable legal uncertainty. In the past, the absence of proper levels of patent right protection in Argentina has prevented research-based international companies from effectively competing in the country.

In addition, adequate patent protection requires proper legal enforcement. In this respect, it is important to mention that the Argentine Patent Office (Argentine Institute of Industrial Property – INPI) faces a major backlog, since the number of patent applications resolved by the INPI is significantly less than the number of applications filed. This backlog also results in limited space at the INPI's offices.

In order to address such problems, the INPI enacted Resolution No 213/2008, which establishes a procedure whereby the Argentine Patent Office will remove from the patent files the international priority document established under the Paris Convention, and return the same to the owner, reserving the right to subsequently request it if necessary. Likewise, from the moment the Resolution comes into force, it will be obligatory to file the translations of international priority documents established under the Paris Convention in digital media (CD-ROM).

Daniel R Zuccherino

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Argentina
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