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Japanese Patent Application FAQs
Change of ownership, Assignment
1. What documents are necessary for recording a change in ownership based on an assignment?
To record a change in ownership, it is necessary to file an assignment document and a power of attorney with the Japanese Patent Office.
The Japanese Patent office will not accept a photocopy of an assignment document. If you would like to use an assignment document that was used in your country, please provide us with the original assignment document or a certified copy of the assignment document, i.e., a copy of the original accompanied by a notarial certificate stating that the copy is a true copy of the original. In that case, the full address of the assignor and Japanese patent application number (or PCT application No.) should be indicated in the assignment document. Otherwise, the Japanese Patent Office will not accept the assignment document.
2. The full address of the assignor is not indicated in the assignment document and no one is available to sign a new assignment document. What should we do?
In addition to an assignment document and a power of attorney, it is necessary to file a notarized copy of a certificate proving that the assignor had an address at the recorded address in the Japanese Patent Office and that the corporation is identical to the one in the assignment document.
3. The applicant no longer exists as it became bankrupt. What types of documents are required to record the change of ownership?
If a bankruptcy trustee can sign an assignment document, such an assignment document is acceptable to the Japanese Patent Office. In that case, it is necessary to file a certificate to prove the trustee is a lawful representative for the assignor as well as the assignment document and a power of attorney.