2.4 Governance for Editing the Manual

Also in this Chapter:

• 2.1 Purpose of the Manual
• 2.2 Navigating the Manual
• 2.3 Determining Changes to the Manual

• 2.5 Periodic Review and Maintenance​​​​​​​

On this page 

• Overview
• Internal Stakeholder Roles and Responsibilities

• Change Process

• Communicating Changes

Overview

The Manual is an active document which is continually updated as changes in the law and practice occur, and IP Australia seeks to continuously improve the clarity of our practices and procedures. IP Australia actively encourages feedback on the content of the Manual to improve its content, structure, and accessibility. 

The type and impact of changes inform the extent of stakeholder consultation, including whether legal input is required, and who is ultimately responsible for approving changes. Before implementing significant changes to practices and procedures, IP Australia generally conducts internal consultation and, when appropriate, engages in external consultation with relevant stakeholders.

Internal Stakeholder Roles and Responsibilities

R = Responsible: Completes the task. 

A = Accountable: Delegates work and determines when the deliverable is complete. Controls resourcing. 

C = Consulted: Provides advice and decision to the Responsible person. 

I = Informed: Advised of the particular task. 

Change Process

The change process adopted depends on the nature of change required. The general processes governing editing of the Patent Manual is outlined below. 

Attending to minor corrections and general maintenance such as upkeep of links etc. does not generally require the oversight of the Content Owners (Patents and Oppositions).  Changes relating to the Manual structure or involving the addition or alteration of features of the data platform used to host the Manual will require endorsement from the Content Owners.

The approach to documenting changes to practice and procedure in the Manual is collaborative with relevant stakeholder groups consulted when appropriate. Throughout the change process the Commissioner should be kept informed as to the nature of the changes under consideration and consulted when required. Generally, approval of the change by the Content Owner is required – in particular the Deputy Commissioner (AGM Patent Oppositions) and one or more of the Patent AGMs.

Communicating Changes

Changes to the Manual are published on the Home page of the internal and external versions. Changes to our practices and procedures or other major changes may be communicated to relevant internal staff and or external stakeholders at the appropriate time determined by the nature and impact of the change.

A description of the changes to the respective Manual page is provided by the author when submitting a page for approval. Authors therefore need to ensure that the description provided is clear and concise to enable users to readily identify the changes made to the page/section.

Internal users can view previous versions of the page by selecting “Page details” and then “Version”.