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United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions
Bernard Matthews Limited (Patent) [2016] UKIntelP o13516 (14 March 2016)
Patent decision
BL number
O/135/16
Concerning rights in
GB1513695.5, GB1515825.6, GB1515826.4 and GB1515827.2
Hearing Officer
Mr H Jones
Decision date
14 March 2016
Person(s) or Company(s) involved
Bernard Matthews Limited
Provisions discussed
Sections 1(1)(a), 1(1)(b) and 76
Keywords
Added subject matter, Inventive step, Novelty
Related Decisions
None
Summary
The applications relate to the treatment of meat to reduce the number of viable micro-organisms thereon without impinging on the fresh, i.e. unfrozen, nature of the meat. All four applications were considered together at a single hearing. Various objections concerning inventive step, clarity and added subject matter were overcome either through amendments proposed at the hearing or through argument. One of the applications, GB1515827.2, was refused for lack of novelty over prior disclosure of the same method for processing meat but for a different effect, the hearing officer citing the case of Tate & Lyle Technology Ltd v Roquette Freres [2010] FSR1.