Madras High Court Allows US Inventor's Late Patent Examination Request Despite Indian Agent's Error

The Madras High Court has directed the Indian Patent Office to accept and process a request for examination filed by a US-based inventor, holding that a patent application cannot be treated as abandoned due to an inadvertent mistake by a patent agent. The court ruled that in the absence of any intention to give up the invention, such procedural lapses should not defeat substantive rights. Justice N Anand Venkatesh passed the order on December 18, 2025, while disposing of a writ petition filed by Smythe challenging the Patent Office's refusal to accept his request for examination in relation to an invention titled “Prediction, Visualisation and Remediation of Satellite Conjunctions.” The invention relates to the use of machine learning techniques to predict potential collisions between orbiting satellites well in advance, enabling better visualisation and preventive control measures. Taking note of the nature of the invention and the steps taken by the inventor once the mistake came to light, the Court allowed the inventor to pursue patent examination proceedings.According to the record, the inventor first filed a patent application in the United States in September 2021, followed by a second US application in September 2022. A Patent Cooperation Treaty application was thereafter filed, claiming priority from both earlier filings. The Indian patent application was filed through an Indian patent agent, claiming priority from the first US application dated September 10, 2021.The difficulty arose when the Indian patent agent mistakenly calculated the deadline for filing the request for examination by computing the 31-month period from the second US application instead of the first application. As a result, the inventor was informed that the deadline would expire in April 2025, whereas it had in fact expired in April 2024. When the agent attempted to file the request in December 2024, the online portal did not accept it and the Patent Office later confirmed that the statutory time limit had lapsed.Before the High Court, the inventor submitted that there was no intention to abandon the patent application and that the failure to file the request for examination within time was solely due to an inadvertent error on the part of the patent agent on whom he relied.The Patent Office opposed the plea, stating that the statutory time period prescribed under the Patents Act and the Patent Rules had expired and that the application was therefore deemed to have been withdrawn.After examining the statutory provisions and earlier decisions, the court observed that mere failure to meet the deadline due to an agent's mistake does not automatically imply an intention to abandon the patent application.Referring to its earlier ruling in Chandra Sekar v. Controller of Patents and Designs and the Delhi High Court's decision in Bry-Air Prokon SAGL v. Union of India, the Court reiterated that valuable statutory rights cannot be extinguished in the absence of any material showing deliberate abandonment.Consequently, the court allowed the writ petition and directed the Patent Office to accept the request for examination and process the patent application in accordance with law.Case Title: Edward Charles Troppi Smythe v. The Controller General Of Patents DesignsCitation: 2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 15Citation: 2026 LLBiz HC (MAD) 8Case Number: WP (IPD) No. 12 of 2025For Petitioner: Advocate Preeti MohanFor Respondent: Central Government Standing Counsel K. Subbu Ranga BharathiClick Here To Read/Download Order

Madras High Court Allows US Inventor's Late Patent Examination Request Despite Indian Agent's Error

Ayushi Shukla

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