§2182. Inventions conceived during Commission contracts; ownership; waiver; hearings

Any invention or discovery, useful in the production or utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy, made or conceived in the course of or under any contract, subcontract, or arrangement entered into with or for the benefit of the Commission, regardless of whether the contract, subcontract, or arrangement involved the expenditure of funds by the Commission, shall be vested in, and be the property of, the Commission, except that the Commission may waive its claim to any such invention or discovery under such circumstances as the Commission may deem appropriate, consistent with the policy of this section. No patent for any invention or discovery, useful in the production or utilization of special nuclear material or atomic energy, shall be issued unless the applicant files with the application, or within thirty days after request therefor by the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (unless the Commission advises the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office that its rights have been determined and that accordingly no statement is necessary) a statement under oath setting forth the full facts surrounding the making or conception of the invention or discovery described in the application and whether the invention or discovery was made or conceived in the course of or under any contract, subcontract, or arrangement entered into with or for the benefit of the Commission, regardless of whether the contract, subcontract, or arrangement involved the expenditure of funds by the Commission. The Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office shall as soon as the application is otherwise in condition for allowance forward copies of the application and the statement to the Commission.

The Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office may proceed with the application and issue the patent to the applicant (if the invention or discovery is otherwise patentable) unless the Commission, within 90 days after receipt of copies of the application and statement, directs the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office to issue the patent to the Commission (if the invention or discovery is otherwise patentable) to be held by the Commission as the agent of and on behalf of the United States.

If the Commission files such a direction with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and if the applicant's statement claims, and the applicant still believes, that the invention or discovery was not made or conceived in the course of or under any contract, subcontract or arrangement entered into with or for the benefit of the Commission entitling the Commission to the title to the application or the patent the applicant may, within 30 days after notification of the filing of such a direction, request a hearing before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The Board shall have the power to hear and determine whether the Commission was entitled to the direction filed with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The Board shall follow the rules and procedures established for interference and derivation cases and an appeal may be taken by either the applicant or the Commission from the final order of the Board to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in accordance with the procedures governing the appeals from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

If the statement filed by the applicant should thereafter be found to contain false material statements any notification by the Commission that it has no objections to the issuance of a patent to the applicant shall not be deemed in any respect to constitute a waiver of the provisions of this section or of any applicable civil or criminal statute, and the Commission may have the title to the patent transferred to the Commission on the records of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office in accordance with the provisions of this section. A determination of rights by the Commission pursuant to a contractual provision or other arrangement prior to the request of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the statement, shall be final in the absence of false material statements or nondisclosure of material facts by the applicant.

(Aug. 1, 1946, ch. 724, title I, §152, as added Aug. 30, 1954, ch. 1073, §1, 68 Stat. 944 ; amended Pub. L. 87–206, §10, Sept. 6, 1961, 75 Stat. 477 ; Pub. L. 87–615, §11, Aug. 29, 1962, 76 Stat. 411 ; Pub. L. 97–164, title I, §162(2), Apr. 2, 1982, 96 Stat. 49 ; Pub. L. 98–622, title II, §205(b), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3388 ; renumbered title I, Pub. L. 102–486, title IX, §902(a)(8), Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 2944 ; Pub. L. 106–113, div. B, §1000(a)(9) [title IV, §4732(b)(19)], Nov. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 1536 , 1501A-585; Pub. L. 112–29, §7(d)(1), Sept. 16, 2011, 125 Stat. 315 .)

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2011-Pub. L. 112–29 substituted "Patent Trial and Appeal Board" for "Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences" in two places and inserted "and derivation" after "established for interference".

1999-Pub. L. 106–113 substituted "Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office" for "Commissioner of Patents" wherever appearing.

1984-Pub. L. 98–622, in third par., substituted "the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences" for "a Board of Patent Interferences" and "the Board of Patent Interferences".

1982-Pub. L. 97–164 substituted "United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit" for "Court of Customs and Patent Appeals" in third par.

1962-Pub. L. 87–615 substituted "allowance" for "allowances" before "forward copies of the application" in first par.

1961-Pub. L. 87–206 clarified language concerning Commission's patent rights on inventions made or conceived under contract, subcontract, or arrangement with Commission, striking out language extending Commission's patent rights to other relationships and activities in connection with Commission contracts, provided for waiver of patent rights consistent with the policy of this section and for finality of determinations of Commission, and dispensed with need for statement to Commissioner of Patents under certain circumstances.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 2011 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 112–29 effective upon the expiration of the 1-year period beginning on Sept. 16, 2011, and applicable to proceedings commenced on or after that effective date, with certain exceptions, see section 7(e) of Pub. L. 112–29, set out as a note under section 6 of Title 35, Patents.

Effective Date of 1999 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 106–113 effective 4 months after Nov. 29, 1999, see section 1000(a)(9) [title IV, §4731] of Pub. L. 106–113, set out as a note under section 1 of Title 35, Patents.

Effective Date of 1984 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 98–622, effective three months after Nov. 8, 1984, see section 207 of Pub. L. 98–622, set out as a note under section 41 of Title 35, Patents.

Effective Date of 1982 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 97–164 effective Oct. 1, 1982, see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as a note under section 171 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.