{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/patents-act-1977/section-99A",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/patents-act-1977/section-99A.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/1977/37",
  "legislation_title": "Patents Act 1977",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/patents-act-1977",
  "path": "section/99A",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "99A",
  "heading": "Power of Patents Court to order report.",
  "text": "(1) Rules of court shall make provision empowering the Patents Court in any proceedings before it under this Act, on or without the application of any party, to order the Patent Office to inquire into and report on any question of fact or opinion.\n(2) Where the court makes such an order on the application of a party, the fee payable to the Patent Office shall be at such rate as may be determined in accordance with rules of court and shall be costs of the proceedings unless otherwise ordered by the court.\n(3) Where the court makes such an order of its own motion, the fee payable to the Patent Office shall be at such rate as may be determined by the Lord Chancellor with the approval of the Treasury and shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Ss. 99A, 99B inserted by Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (c. 48, SIF 67A), s. 295, Sch. 5 para. 26"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1977/37/section/99A",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T10:24:17.133485+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}