Under South African Patent Law it is the responsibility of the applicant to make sure that the invention meets the requirements as set out in the Patent Law.

Attacks on the validity of patents can occur when the invention was in fact obvious to a person skilled in the art of that specific field; when the invention was not in fact new; formed part of an invention already registered, or applied for or published about; or was already used in secret somewhere in South Africa.

To prevent attacks on the validity of a patent under SA Patent Law it is important to conduct a thorough patent search before registration and to ensure that an assessment of all the above shows that the invention meets all the requirements for successful registration.