Category Archives: V. The International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties (UPOV)

The International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties (UPOV)

Plant Variety Protection Data and Statistics.

https://www.upov.int/databases/en/

Background

The protection of plant varieties is covered by the Convention on the Protection of Plant Varieties of 1961 (UPOV Convention), which entered into force in 1968 and was revised in 1972, 1978 and 1991 and created the Union internationale pour la protection des obtentions végétales (UPOV) / International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties (UPOV). The last Acts of 1978 or 1991 are those in force, as opted for by the UPOV members. As of 2020 the UPOV has 76 contracting parties. It is legally separate from the WIPO, and is not part of the UN System. The Council and the Office (or executive arm) of the Union are the permanent organs of the Union. Its headquarters are in Geneva. Pursuant to an agreement between WIPO and UPOV, the WIPO Director General is the Secretary General of UPOV. Regarding the legislative history, see Sigrid Sterckx and Julian Cockbain, Exclusions from Patentability: How Far Has the European Patent Office Eroded Boundaries? 17-65 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2012) discussed infra in section VI(A).

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