Section 124A of the Patents Act, 1970
Adjudication of penalties
Section 124A sets up an officer of the Patent Office to decide penalties for certain contraventions, with a right of appeal.
Official legal text
The verbatim statutory text of this provision is reproduced from the official source and checked by our legal reviewer before it is published here. Until that check is complete for this page, read the exact wording directly from the official source linked below — it is the only version that governs.
This explanation is written for clarity, not for citation. The official statutory text and any Gazette notification in force on your date govern, and they prevail over anything said here.
What this section says, in plain language
The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 changed the way several minor contraventions in the Patents Act are dealt with. Instead of criminal prosecution, they are now handled as monetary penalties decided inside the system that knows the subject. Section 124A is the machinery for that change. It provides for penalties under Section 120, which deals with false claims of patent rights, under Section 122 relating to information, and under Section 123, which deals with unregistered patent agent practice, to be adjudged by an adjudicating officer appointed by the Controller General from among senior officers of the Patent Office.
The process is an inquiry, not a trial. The adjudicating officer holds the inquiry in the prescribed manner and must give the person concerned a reasonable opportunity of being heard before imposing any penalty. The officer can summon a person who knows the facts to give evidence, and can require the production of documents that are relevant to the inquiry. If, after the inquiry, the officer is satisfied that the contravention took place, he can impose a penalty within the range fixed by the section that was contravened.
There is a right of appeal against the adjudicating officer's order to an appellate authority, exercised within the period fixed by the section. Check the current text for that period before you act, and note that this appeal is a different route from an appeal to the High Court under Section 117A. Section 117A deals with listed decisions of the Controller in patent office proceedings, such as refusal of an application or the outcome of a post-grant opposition. Section 124A deals with penalties for contraventions and keeps them in a separate, simpler channel.
For businesses the change is practical rather than theoretical. Because the process is administrative, it can move faster than a criminal case and it does not carry the stigma of a criminal court, but the same conduct that once brought a prosecution can now bring a penalty order much more quickly. The correct response to a notice is to take it seriously from day one: gather the documents, prepare a factual reply, use the hearing to explain what happened and what was done to correct it, and get professional help before the inquiry, not after the order.
Why this section matters
Businesses that mark products as patented, patentees and licensees who file information under the Act, and persons offering patent agent services.
From the moment a notice of inquiry is received from an adjudicating officer of the Patent Office.
A power to impose monetary penalties for defined contraventions after an inquiry, together with a right to be heard and a right of appeal.
A penalty order can be passed without your version on record, and the appeal window is short.
How it works in practice
A notice that arrived by email
Ujjwal Home Appliances Pvt Ltd of Ludhiana receives a notice from an adjudicating officer of the Patent Office. It says the company's mixer grinder cartons and its marketplace listings describe the product as patented in India, although the Register shows no subsisting Indian patent in the company's name. The marketing head assumes it is a routine query and lets it sit for a month. The founder then involves an adviser, who moves quickly. The company pulls the listings, orders new cartons, writes to its distributors, prepares a chronology showing that the marking came from a lapsed patent that the company failed to renew, and files a reply with photographs and invoices proving that corrective steps were taken before the hearing date. At the hearing the company accepts the facts, explains the cause, and shows the correction. The officer imposes a penalty at the lower end of the range. Delay had cost the company its best argument for months, but the record of prompt correction still mattered.
Simplified illustration only. Actual legal outcomes depend on the facts.
Key points to remember
- Section 124A was inserted by the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 as part of decriminalising certain contraventions.
- It applies to penalties under Sections 120, 122 and 123.
- A senior officer of the Patent Office appointed by the Controller General acts as adjudicating officer.
- The officer must hold an inquiry and give the person a reasonable opportunity of being heard.
- The officer can summon witnesses and call for documents relevant to the inquiry.
- An appeal lies to an appellate authority within the period fixed by the section, which is separate from an appeal to the High Court under Section 117A.
Common mistakes and misunderstandings
- Treating an adjudication notice as informal correspondence. It begins a statutory inquiry that can end in a penalty order.
- Assuming decriminalisation means the conduct no longer matters. The contravention still stands; only the forum and the consequence have changed.
- Confusing this appeal with an appeal to the High Court under Section 117A. They cover different decisions and follow different routes.
- Waiting until the order is passed to fix the underlying problem. Correcting the marking, filing the missing statement or stopping the offending practice before the hearing is the strongest material you can put before the officer.
Connected provisions
A section tells you what the law is. A rule tells you how the Patent Office runs it from day to day. The two are kept apart here so that a reader can quote the section accurately and then look up the current rule for the practical steps.
Forms, deadlines and fees
- Reply to an adjudication notice within the time stated in it, and ask in writing before that time expires if you need longer.
- An appeal against a penalty order must be filed within the period fixed in the section, running from the date the order is received; confirm the current period in the text of the section before you file.
Open the deadline calculator — and have every date confirmed against the current Rules before you rely on it.
Fees are prescribed in the First Schedule to the Patents Rules. Because the Schedule is revised from time to time, and charges different amounts to different categories of applicant and for physical as against electronic filing, this page describes the fee without stating a figure. How Indian patent fees work.
Amendment history
What changed in this provision, newest first. Read the footnotes in the official consolidated text for the full record.
- 2023The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023The section was inserted. An officer appointed by the Controller holds an inquiry and may impose the monetary penalties that replaced several offences.
Compiled from official consolidated texts and Gazette notifications. See the site-wide change log.
Related judgments
Court decisions shape how this provision is applied, but a summary is useful only if it is right. Every case note on this site is read by a legal reviewer before it goes live, and none has been completed for this provision so far. This section will fill in as those reviews finish. How case notes are prepared.
Questions people ask about Section 124A
Which contraventions are decided under Section 124A?
The penalties provided under Section 120 for falsely representing that an article is patented in India or covered by a pending Indian application, under Section 122 for refusing or failing to supply information required by the Act and for knowingly giving false information, and under Section 123 for practising or holding out as a patent agent without registration. These were converted from criminal offences into penalties by the Jan Vishwas Act, 2023. Other provisions, such as Sections 118 and 119, remain offences dealt with by criminal courts.
Who is the adjudicating officer and what powers does he have?
He is a senior officer of the Patent Office appointed for the purpose by the Controller General. His task is to hold an inquiry in the prescribed manner into an alleged contravention and to decide whether a penalty should be imposed. He can summon any person who appears to know the facts, take evidence and require the production of documents relevant to the inquiry. Before imposing any penalty he must give the person concerned a reasonable opportunity of being heard, which means notice of what is alleged and a genuine chance to answer it.
Can I appeal a penalty imposed under Section 124A?
Yes. The section provides for an appeal to an appellate authority against the adjudicating officer's order, to be filed within the period fixed there, counted from the date you receive a copy of the order. Because that period is short, decide quickly and preserve the envelope or email showing when the order reached you. This appeal is separate from an appeal to the High Court under Section 117A, which is available only against the listed decisions of the Controller in patent office proceedings.
Does paying a penalty end the matter?
It closes that particular proceeding, but it does not repair the underlying position. If the marking on your products is still wrong, if the working statement is still unfiled, or if an unregistered person is still handling client filings, a fresh contravention can arise and a further inquiry can follow, and some contraventions carry an additional amount for each day they continue. Use the occasion to fix the process, record what you changed, and set a review date so that the same issue does not repeat.
Received a penalty notice from the Patent Office?
MYCrave Consultancy prepares your reply, evidence and hearing strategy for adjudication proceedings under Section 124A.
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