Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73not60

§2562 Presumption of Validity; Defenses

Title 7 › Chapter 57— PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION › Subchapter III— PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION AND RIGHTS › Part L— Remedies for Infringement of Plant Variety Protection, and Other Actions › § 2562

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

Certificates of plant variety protection are assumed to be valid. Anyone who says a certificate is not valid must prove it. In an infringement lawsuit, the defendant must state these defenses: (1) no infringement, no liability, or the certificate cannot be enforced; (2) the certificate is invalid because it fails the protectability rules in section 2402; (3) the certificate is invalid for not meeting a requirement in section 2422; (4) the act was done under an earlier, conflicting certificate before notice; (5) any other defense allowed by this chapter.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §2562

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Certificates of plant variety protection shall be presumed valid. The burden of establishing invalidity of a plant variety protection shall rest on the party asserting invalidity.

(b)The following shall be defenses in any action charging infringement and shall be pleaded: (1) noninfringement, absence of liability for infringement, or unenforceability; (2) invalidity of the plant variety protection in suit on any ground specified in section 2402 of this title as a condition for protectability; (3) invalidity of the plant variety protection in suit for failure to comply with any requirement of section 2422 of this title; (4) that the asserted infringement was performed under an existing certificate adverse to that asserted and prior to notice of the infringement; and (5) any other fact or act made a defense by this chapter.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 2562

Title 7 — Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60