Stork Pompen BV v Weir Pumps Ltd

In the matter of the Patents Act 1952 and patent application number 563613 by Stork Pompen BV, and an application for an extension of time by Weir Pumps Ltd, the Supervising Examiner of Patents considered whether Weir Pumps Ltd could be granted an extension to lodge a notice of opposition. The patent application was accepted on July 16, 1987, and the three-month period for lodging a notice of opposition expired on October 16, 1987. Weir Pumps Ltd lodged a notice of opposition on December 8, 1987, accompanied by an application for an extension of time. Stork Pompen BV objected to the extension of time, leading to a hearing in Canberra on January 19, 1988.

The legal issues before the court were whether Weir Pumps Ltd could be granted an extension of time under subsection 160(2)(a) of the Patents Act and if the extension could be granted based on the circumstances and grounds provided. The court had to determine if the failure to lodge a notice of opposition within the stipulated time was due to an error or omission on the part of Weir Pumps Ltd or its agents and if so, whether the Commissioner had a discretion to grant the extension.

The court concluded that Weir Pumps Ltd had no intention to oppose the patent application before the deadline and had deliberately decided not to search for patent applications in the relevant field. Therefore, there was no error or omission within the terms of subsection 160(2) and no grounds for the Commissioner to exercise their discretion to grant an extension. The court refused the application for an extension of time and awarded costs against Weir Pumps Ltd.