Historical and Revision Notes There is no provision corresponding to the first sentence explicitly stated in the present statutes, but the refusal of patents by the Patent Office, and the holding of patents invalid by the courts, on the ground of lack of invention or lack of patentable novelty has been followed since at least as early as 1850. This paragraph is added with the view that an explicit statement in the statute may have some stabilizing effect, and also to serve as a basis for the addition at a later time of some criteria which may be worked out. The second sentence states that patentability as to this requirement is not to be negatived by the manner in which the invention was made, that is, it is immaterial whether it resulted from long toil and experimentation or from a flash of genius.

Effective Date of 2004 Amendment Pub. L. 108–453, § 3, , 118 Stat. 3596, provided that: “(a) In General.— The amendments made by this Act [amending this section] shall apply to any patent granted on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [ ]. “(b) Special Rule.— United States Patent and Trademark Office rendered before the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall not affect the right of any party in any action pending before the United States Patent and Trademark Office or a court on the date of the enactment of this Act to have that party’s rights determined on the basis of the provisions of title 35, The amendments made by this Act shall not affect any final decision of a court or therendered before the date of the enactment of this Act, and shall not affect the right of any party in any action pending before theor a court on the date of the enactment of this Act to have that party’s rights determined on the basis of the provisions of title 35, United States Code, in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act.”

Effective Date of 1999 Amendment Pub. L. 106–113, div. B, § 1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4807(b)], , 113 Stat. 1536, 1501A–591, provided that: “The amendment made by this section [amending this section] shall apply to any application for patent filed on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [ ].”