2.4.11.1 Introduction

Date Published

The normal requirement for a novelty objection to apply is for a citation to be open to public inspection (OPI) before the relevant priority date. However, where the citation is an Australian patent application, including a PCT application which has designated Australia, a novelty objection can in certain circumstances be raised, even though the citation was not OPI before the relevant priority date. This situation is colloquially referred to as "Whole of Contents".