U.S. Patent No. PP30,860 P3

U.S. Patent No. PP30,860 P3 (‘860) issued on September 3, 2019, for “Hybrid Tea Rose Plant Named ‘MEITHATIE’.” It was issued to inventor Alain A. Meilland of Antibes, France. The applicant/assignee is The Conard-Pyle Company of West Grove, Pennsylvania. The Conard-Pyle Co. is the famous 164-year old horticulture company that focuses on roses, perennials, and garden plant breeding and licensing. This patent is a plant patent under 35 U.S.C. §161, which protects new and distinct cultivars of plants. According to the specification, the Latin name is hybrid Rosa hybrida and the varietal denomination is ‘MEITHATIE’ (MPEP 1601).

Figure 3 below illustrates the plant ‘MEITHATIE’.

Source: U.S. Patent No. PP30,860 P3, Sept. 3, 2019, to Alain A. Meilland (inventor); The Conard-Pyle Company (applicant/assignee)

For plant patents, the utility requirement under 35 U.S.C. §101 is replaced with distinctiveness, and the ‘860 patent’s distinctiveness over the prior art as described in the specification is shown as:

1. very abundantly and nearly continuously forms attractive, cup-shaped, dark pink colored blossoms,
2. forms attractive, very dense, glossy foliage,
3. exhibits very good tolerance to diseases, particularly against Black Spot and rust,
4. is very floriferous,
5. emits a very pleasant strong fragrance, and
6. is well suited for providing attractive ornamentation.

All plant patents have a 20 year term from the filing date, and the ‘860 patent expires on April 5, 2038 (MPEP 2701).

The Cooperative Patent Classification is A01H (new plants or processes for obtaining them; plant reproduction by tissue culture techniques).

Plant patents are a unique type of patents issued by the USPTO, although only a very small number (about 1%) are actually issued each year. Keep in mind the plants not only must be distinct, but also new, which means they must invented (i.e., man-made or genetically modified), and asexually reproducible (i.e., not through seed propagation). Plant patents represent a facsinating area under U.S. patent law.

Please contact Yonaxis for more information on plant patents, or patents in general, if you have any questions.