A patent gives the inventor the exclusive rights to commercially exploit their invention for a period of time. If the new process involves an 'inventive' step a standard patent is obtainable which lasts for 20 years, after which it can be renewed. If the new process involves an 'innovative' step, an innovative patent is obtainable that lasts for eight years and is renewable.
The patent holder’s rights are exhausted once patented products are sold.
If a patent is infringed, a court may grant an injunction and, if the plaintiff requests it, either damages or an account of profits. Additional damages can be imposed on grounds of the flagrancy of the infringement; the need to deter similar infringements; the conduct of the party that infringed the patent; and any benefit shown to have accrued to that party because of the infringement.