page_title: Australian patent law
section_title: Pre-Federation
hierarchical_section_title: Australian patent law / History / Pre-Federation
caption_attribution_description: English: Example of an early Australian patent - Victorian patent 1033 An invention for "An improved apparatus for separating metallic ores from gangues, and the metals from ores and gangues"
context_page_description: Australian patent law is law governing the granting of a temporary monopoly on the use of an invention, in exchange for the publication and free use of the invention after a certain time. The primary piece of legislation is the Patents Act 1990. Patents are administered by the Commonwealth Government agency IP Australia. Australia is a member state of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and compliant with Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. This makes Australian patent law broadly comparable with patent law in other major countries.
context_section_description: The system of granting patents in the six Australian colonies was based upon British law, and can be traced back to the English Statute of Monopolies of 1623. This was enacted in 1624. Prior to the colonies enacting their own legislation in the mid-19th century and forming their own patent offices, inventors applied to England for patent registration and protection.
  When legislatures were established in the Australian colonies, people could apply (petition the parliament) for a patent to be granted by the governor of the colony, by way of a private bill. The first of these was South Australian Private Act No.1 of 1848, granted to Andrew John Murray of Adelaide for "An improved windlass", on 20 June 1848, for a period of 10 years.  A further three private acts were granted in South Australia; and several were granted in Western Australia.
  The first general patent act in Australia was introduced into New South Wales in 1852 and came into force on 10 January 1854. Victoria proclaimed its first Patent Act in 1854, with the length of the grant being for 14 years.
caption: Victorian patent 1033,(1867)
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