This text of North Dakota § 4.1-44-08 (Genetically modified seed - Patent infringement - Sampling - Mediation) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.
1. For purposes of this section, "farmer" means the person responsible for planting a
crop on, managing the crop, and harvesting the crop from land on which a patent
infringement is alleged to have occurred.
2. a. Before a person holding a patent on a genetically modified seed may enter upon
any land farmed by another for the purpose of obtaining crop samples to
determine whether patent infringement has occurred, the person holding the
patent shall:
(1)Provide written notice to the agriculture commissioner of the person's belief
that a patent infringement has occurred and include facts supporting the
allegation;
(2)Provide written notice to the farmer of the allegation that a patent
infringement has occurred and request written permission to enter upon the
farmer's land; and
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1. For purposes of this section, "farmer" means the person responsible for planting a
crop on, managing the crop, and harvesting the crop from land on which a patent
infringement is alleged to have occurred.
2. a. Before a person holding a patent on a genetically modified seed may enter upon
any land farmed by another for the purpose of obtaining crop samples to
determine whether patent infringement has occurred, the person holding the
patent shall:
(1) Provide written notice to the agriculture commissioner of the person's belief
that a patent infringement has occurred and include facts supporting the
allegation;
(2) Provide written notice to the farmer of the allegation that a patent
infringement has occurred and request written permission to enter upon the
farmer's land; and
(3) Obtain the written permission of the farmer.
b. If the farmer withholds written permission, the person holding a patent may
petition the district court of the judicial district in which the property is located for
an order granting permission to enter upon the farmer's land.
3. The farmer may accompany the person holding the patent at the time any samples are
taken.
4. If requested by the farmer or the person holding the patent, the state seed
commissioner shall accompany the person holding the patent at the time any sample
is taken. The state seed commissioner may impose a fee for providing that service.
The patent holder and the farmer shall each pay one-half of the fee charged by the
commissioner.
5. If the person holding a patent believes that the crop from which samples are to be
taken may be subject to intentional damage or destruction, the person may seek a
protection order from the district court. The protection order may not interrupt or
interfere with normal farming practices, including harvest and tillage.
6. The person holding the patent may take samples from a standing crop, from
representative standing plants in the field, or from crops remaining in the field after
harvest.
7. The person holding the patent may not obtain more samples than are reasonably
necessary to make a determination regarding patent infringement. An equal number of
samples must remain in the custody of the state seed commissioner or the farmer for
future comparison and verification purposes. All samples taken must be placed in
containers labeled as to the date, time, and location from which they were taken. The
labels must be signed by the farmer, the person who took the samples, and the state
seed commissioner if the commissioner was present at the time the samples were
taken. The patent holder and the farmer shall share equally the cost of the containers
needed for the second set of samples that are retained by the state seed
commissioner or the farmer. The farmer and the person holding the patent shall share
equally the cost of the containers and the cost of obtaining the samples.
8. Within sixty days from the date the samples are taken, an independent laboratory shall
conduct all tests to determine whether patent infringement has occurred. The person
holding the patent shall notify the farmer of the test results, by certified mail or by any
other method of delivery for which a signature is required, within twenty-one days from
the date the results were reported to the person holding the patent.
9. The parties may participate in mediation at any time. The mediation must be
conducted by a mediator jointly selected by the farmer and the person holding the
patent. If the farmer and the person holding the patent are unable to select a mediator,
the mediation must be conducted by an independent mediation service.
10. If the case is not settled after mediation, either party may file a claim for relief with the
federal district court having jurisdiction over the claim. Unless otherwise specified in a
contract between the farmer and the person holding the patent, the appropriate state
district court is the one that has jurisdiction over that portion of this state in which the
farmer's land is located.