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. Session 11. 1918. NEW ZEALAND

PATENTS, DESIGNS, AND TRADE-MARKS. TWENTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE REGISTRAR.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly pursuant to Section 113 of the Patents, Designs, and 'Trade-marks Act, 1911.

I have 11k- honour to submit my report of proceedings under the Patents, Designs, and Trademarks Act, 1911, during the past year. The total number of applications in respect of patents, designs, and trade-marks for the year lias only slightly increased from the number in 1915, which was the lowest received as a result of the war— 1913. 1914. 1915. 1916. 1917. 2,627 2,316 1,953 2,040 2,038 but the number of specifications received in the year (which affords perhaps a better indication of the work of the Office) shows a marked increase over the total for each of the two previous years, although, of course, it is considerably behind the number received yearly prior to the war : — 1913. 1914. 1915. 1916. 1917. 2,051 1,860 1,553 1,483 1,682 The conditions arising from the war no doubt result in even fewer inventions than formerly being perfected and brought into use, and it is hoped that an opportunity will be afforded inventors of securing an adequate return from such of those that may prove of benefit to the public. Following the Imperial Act, the New Zealand statute requires that the Office shall examine all specifications to see that the inventions have been properly described, and also authorizes it to search and require amendment of or refuse cases where an invention is partly or wholly anticipated. This is no doubt an important part of the duties of a Patent Office; but while in Great Britain and Australia special staffs of examiners are appointed for the purpose, practically no provision has yet been made here for doing the work in a thoroughly satisfactory manner. At a time like the present no extension of the existing facilities can probably be effected, but as amendments of the law are under consideration in Great Britain, and may be so here, it is perhaps not out of place to lay stress on the necessity for the provision of an adequate staff to render legislation in those respects fully effective. The total revenue of the. Office was £6,954 19s. 3d., as compared with ,£7,107 lis. 3d. for the previous year, a decrease of .£152 12s. The expenditure amounted to £3,258 4s. lid., an increase of £422 19s. lOd. on that of the former year, in which it was £2,835 ss. Id. Receipts other than those of the ordinary nature included fees for the renewal of marks registered prior to 1890, and due before the expiry of every fourteen years from that date.

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