171Acquisition of inventions or patents by Commonwealth

#### 171 Acquisition of inventions or patents by Commonwealth (1) The Governor‑General may direct that a patent, or an invention that is the subject of a patent application, be acquired by the Commonwealth. (2) When a direction is given, all rights in respect of the patent or the invention are, by force of this subsection, transferred to and vested in the Commonwealth. (3) Notice of the acquisition must be: (a) given to the applicant and the nominated person, or the patentee; and (b) published in the Official Journal and the Gazette unless, in the case of the acquisition of an invention that is the subject of an application for a patent, a prohibition order, or an order under section 152, is in force in respect of the application. (4) The Commonwealth must pay a compensable person such compensation as is agreed between the Commonwealth and the person or, in the absence of agreement, as is determined by a prescribed court on the application of either of them.