Article 20 of the Saudi Patents Law
المادة 20 من نظام براءات الاختراع · الفصل الأول: أحكام عامة
The article protects a person who in good faith made a product, used a process or exploited a plant variety before the filing date, by allowing that person to continue the same activities without expanding them.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
إذا قام شخص – بحسن نية – بتصنيع منتج، أو باستعمال عملية صناعية، أو بتصنيع دارة متكاملة مدمج فيها التصميم، أو سلعة تتضمن هذه الدارة، أو باستغلال صنف نباتي، أو باتخاذ ترتيبات جدية لذلك قبل تاريخ إيداع طلب الحماية، أو طلب الأسبقية عن ذلك المنتج، أو العملية الصناعية، أو التصميم، أو الصنف النباتي، أو تاريخ أول استغلال تجاري للتصميم في أي مكان في العالم؛ فإنه يكون له – رغم صدور وثيقة الحماية – الحق في الاستمرار بالقيام بهذه الأعمال نفسها، دون التوسع فيها، ولا يجوز التنازل عن هذا الحق، أو انتقاله للغير، إلا مع سائر عناصر المنشأة، أو أحدها، ويدخل في ذلك السمعة التجارية.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 20 explained in plain English
This article establishes what is called the right of a prior user in good faith, an important exception to the private right of the owner of a protection document.
Who benefits? A person who, in good faith, did any of the following:
- Made a product, or used an industrial process.
- Made an integrated circuit with the design incorporated in it, or a good containing such a circuit.
- Exploited a plant variety.
- Or made serious arrangements to do any of these.
Timing: this must be before the filing date of the protection application, or of the priority application, or before the date of the first commercial exploitation of the design anywhere in the world.
The right: even though the protection document has been issued, that person is entitled to continue the same activities, but without expanding them.
Restriction on transfer: this right may not be assigned or transferred to others except together with all elements of the enterprise or one of them, including goodwill. The right cannot be sold separately.
This provision is linked to the protection periods in Article 19, as it applies throughout the term of the document. It differs from the contractual license in Article 21, because a prior user does not need the owner's permission.
Proving good faith and priority is a question of facts, so if you face an objection from the owner of a protection document, consult a lawyer specializing in intellectual property and patents.
Practical example
A factory in Qassim was producing, in good faith, a kind of plastic cover in a particular way before someone else filed a patent application for it. After the patent is issued the factory is entitled to continue the same production, but it may not expand it, nor sell this right except with the factory or one of its elements.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 20 of the Saudi Patents Law
Does the issue of a patent to someone else stop me from continuing to make a product I was making before it?
If you were making it in good faith before the filing date of the protection application or the priority application, you may continue the same activities without expanding them.
Is making arrangements to manufacture enough?
Yes. The article covers someone who made serious arrangements for it before the specified date.
Can the right of a prior user be sold?
It may not be assigned or transferred except together with all elements of the enterprise or one of them, including goodwill.
More articles on Patent Infringement
- Article 34
The article defines infringement of protected subject matter and empowers the Committee to stop infringement and award compensation and a fine of up to SAR 100,000, doubled for repeat offenses.
يعد تعديا على موضوع الحماية القيام بأي عمل من أعمال الاستغلال المنصوص عليها في الأحكام الخاصة لكل موضوع من موضوعات الحماية، يقوم به أي شخص في المملكة دون موافقة
- Article 47
The article gives the patent owner the right to sue before the Committee anyone who exploits the invention in the Kingdom without consent, and defines the forms of exploitation and the non-commercial scientific research exception.
لمالك البراءة الحق في رفع دعوى أمام اللجنة ضد أي شخص يتعدى على اختراعه، باستغلاله دون موافقته داخل المملكة، ويعد استغلالا للاختراع: أ - إذا كان منتجًا: صناعته،
- Article 48
The article shifts to the defendant the burden of proving that its product was not made by the patented process, when one of two conditions is met, while taking account of its industrial and commercial secrets.
مع مراعاة المصالح المشروعة للمدعى عليه من حيث حماية أسراره الصناعية والتجارية، إذا كان موضوع براءة الاختراع المدعى بالتعدي عليها عملية صناعية لصنع منتج ما؛ فعلى
- Article 51
The article gives the owner of a design certificate the right to sue anyone who copies, imports, sells or distributes its design in the Kingdom without consent, with an exception for personal and scientific copying.
لمالك شهادة التصميم الحق في رفع دعوى أمام اللجنة ضد أي شخص يتعدى على تصميمه باستغلاله دون موافقته داخل المملكة، ويعد استغلالًا للتصميم القيام بأي عمل من الأعمال
- Article 53
The article excepts from infringement the acts in paragraph (B) of Article 51 when done by someone who did not know the circuit contains a copied design, and requires him to pay fair compensation.
لا تعد الأعمال المذكورة في الفقرة (ب) من المادة الحادية والخمسين من هذا النظام تعديًا، إذا باشرها، أو أمر بالقيام بها من لم يكن يعلم أو ليس لديه أسباب معقولة لل
- Article 56
The article gives the plant patent owner the right to sue anyone who exploits the protected variety's propagating material in the Kingdom without consent, and extends the rights to harvested material and derived varieties, with exceptions.
أ - لمالك البراءة النباتية الحق في رفع دعوى أمام اللجنة ضد أي شخص يتعدى على الصنف المحمي باستغلال مادة تكاثر الصنف المحمي دون موافقته داخل المملكة، ويعد استغلال
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.