In the case of QR Sciences Ltd v BTG International Ltd [2005], the defendant company, BTG, (a purchaser of intellectual property and technology rights, particularly patents) granted an exclusive licence to QR Sciences (an Australian Company), in September 2002 to use a large number of its patents subsisting in many different countries.

A clause in the licence agreement granted QR Sciences the right to assign the patents in certain circumstances. Clause 14.4 of the licence stated that: