The Australian Innovation Patent – Not Quite Dead Yet!

Australian innovation patents remain viable litigation tools despite new filings ending in 2021. These patents offer same rights as standard patents but with lower inventiveness threshold, making validity challenges difficult. The "mothership" strategy allows patent owners to file multiple divisional innovation patents from pending standard applications with effective filing dates before August 25, 2021. Courts rejected abuse of process challenges to this tactical approach. Patent owners can preserve litigation options by maintaining pending applications through successive divisional filings before final expiration in 2029.