Re: Plant Variety Protection Act

Sec. 2402. Right to plant variety protection; plant varieties protectable 

     (a) In general 
     The breeder of any sexually reproduced or tuber propagated plant variety
(other than
     fungi or bacteria) who has so reproduced the variety, or the successor in
interest of the
     breeder, shall be entitled to plant variety protection for the variety,
subject to the
     conditions and requirements of this chapter, if the variety is - 
          (1) new, in the sense that, on the date of filing of the 
          application for plant variety protection, propagating or 
          harvested material of the variety has not been sold or otherwise 
          disposed of to other persons, by or with the consent of the 
          breeder, or the successor in interest of the breeder, for 
          purposes of exploitation of the variety - 
               (A) in the United States, more than 1 year prior to the date 
               of filing; or 
               (B) in any area outside of the United States - 
                    (i) more than 4 years prior to the date of filing, except 
                    that in the case of a tuber propagated plant variety the 
                    Secretary may waive the 4-year limitation for a period
ending 
                    1 year after April 4, 1996; or 
                    (ii) in the case of a tree or vine, more than 6 years
prior 
                    to the date of filing; 
          (2) distinct, in the sense that the variety is clearly 
          distinguishable from any other variety the existence of which is 
          publicly known or a matter of common knowledge at the time of the 
          filing of the application; 
          (3) uniform, in the sense that any variations are describable, 
          predictable, and commercially acceptable; and 
          (4) stable, in the sense that the variety, when reproduced, 
          will remain unchanged with regard to the essential and 
          distinctive characteristics of the variety with a reasonable 
          degree of reliability commensurate with that of varieties of the 
          same category in which the same breeding method is employed. 
     (b) Multiple applicants 
          (1) In general 
          If 2 or more applicants submit applications on the same 
          effective filing date for varieties that cannot be clearly 
          distinguished from one another, but that fulfill all other 
          requirements of subsection (a) of this section, the applicant who 
          first complies with all requirements of this chapter shall be 
          entitled to a certificate of plant variety protection, to the 
          exclusion of any other applicant. 
          (2) Requirements completed on same date 
               (A) In general 
               Except as provided in subparagraph (B), if 2 or more 
               applicants comply with all requirements for protection on the 
               same date, a certificate shall be issued for each variety. 
               (B) Varieties indistinguishable 
               If the varieties that are the subject of the applications 
               cannot be distinguished in any manner, a single certificate 
               shall be issued jointly to the applicants.
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