Inventorship

Inventorship is not a courtesy, a reward or a matter of seniority. It is a question of fact about who contributed to the claimed invention.

In simple words

The identification of the person or people who actually devised the invention as claimed - which is legally distinct from who owns it.

Think of it as

Authorship of the idea, not ownership of the right.

Why it matters

Naming a head of department who contributed nothing, or leaving out a junior engineer who solved the key problem, creates a defect that can surface much later. Since 2024 an inventor may also request a certificate of inventorship from the Controller for a patent in force.

A simple example

Three researchers are named because they are on the project. Only one contributed to the claimed subject matter after the claims were narrowed during prosecution. Inventorship should be revisited when claims change.

Common mistake

Fixing inventorship at the start of the project and never revisiting it. It follows the claims, and the claims change.

Where it comes from

Patents Act 1970, sections 6, 28 and 88; Patents Rules 2003, rule 70A and Form 8A (certificate of inventorship, inserted 2024)