47. Co-ownership of patents and applications for patents

Where a patent is granted to two or more persons, each of them shall, subject to any agreement to the contrary, be entitled to an equal undivided share in the patent.

Where two or more persons are proprietors of a patent, then, subject to this section and subject to any agreement to the contrary —

Subject to sections 20 and 48 and to any agreement for the time being in force, where two or more persons are proprietors of a patent, one of them shall not without the consent of the other or others grant a licence under the patent or assign or mortgage a share in the patent.

Subject to sections 20 and 48 where two or more persons are proprietors of a patent, anyone else may supply one of those persons with the means, relating to an essential element of the invention, for putting the invention into effect, and the supply of those means by virtue of this subsection shall not amount to an infringement of the patent.

Where a patented product is disposed of by any of two or more proprietors to any person, that person and any other person claiming through him shall be entitled to deal with the product in the same way as if it had been disposed of by a sole registered proprietor.

Nothing in subsection (1) or (2) shall affect the mutual rights or obligations of trustees or of the personal representatives of a deceased person, or their rights or obligations as such.

This section shall have effect in relation to an application for a patent which is filed as it has effect in relation to a patent and —