104

Cases within the compe­tency of the civil courts.

When the confiscation or custody of imitations or infriniremerits may be made by a civil judge.

Previous judgments of the Ministry of Com­merce to be produced during litigation.

Encroachments on trade rights of third parties.

Decision as to extent of infringement.

be officially demanded, and the proceedings of the penal authorities stayed pending its receipt.

The confiscation which may already have been ordered, or the other provisional dispositions which may have been made, can, however, be maintained till the decision as to the continuance of the proceedings lias been arrived at.

§46.

Provided it is not a question of the infliction of a punishment for infringement of a patent, but only of the discontinuance of such infringement as mentioned in § 40, or if it is only a matter of decision as to the ownership of a patent, whether the dispute be about the priority of the discovery, invention, or improvement, or a matter of private right of the aggrieved party which has been referred by the Criminal Tribunals to the civil courts, these latter will examine into and decide upon them, and moreover, in those Crown lands in which the summary proce­dure in such matters is introduced, in accordance with the existing; regulations for such cases.

§ 47.

If the existence of an. infringement is authenticated, or is proved in consequence of an inspection or scientific report having been made, the civil judge can likewise appoint, at the request of the aggrieved party, the immediate confiscation or other suitable custody of the imitations or counterfeits of the patented article (§ 40) witli due regard to the case prescribed in § 44, either unconditionally or against deposit of a suitable security for libel and damage.

Every such measure must, however, be justified by means of a complaint within eight days, in accordance with the provisions of the rules of court, as is the case with a prohibition; otherwise it would have to be set aside at once on application by the opponent, and due satisfaction given for libel and damage.

§ 48.

If the decision of a complaint within the competence of the civil judge depends on previous questions as to which the judgment of the Ministry of Trade and Commerce is given, it is incumbent on the parties to obtain this judgment, and produce it in the course of the litigation.

§ 49 .

Encroachments on the trade rights of third parties which the owner of a patent commits in the use thereof by exceeding the limits of his rights therein established, are to be punished by those authorities appointed to determine in infringements of trade-regulations in accordance with the special provisions existing in such cases. The circumstance of his having misused the patent for a trade encroachment is at the same time to be regarded as a specially aggravating circumstance.

§ 50 .

To what extent the party who unlawfully lays claim to the originality of the discovery, invention, or improvement of another in order to obtain a patent for it himself or by means of third parties, consequently becomes guilty of a fraud or other punishable act, is decided in conformity with the laws relating to punish­ment.