navigating the patent maze

The Third Amendment to the Patent Law of China are expected to be approved and implemented early 2009. Some of the proposed changes, which were published in a draft released in March 2008, include:

• disclosure rules for inventions that rely on genetic resources or traditional knowledge and denial of a patent for inventions that “completely rely” on either if acquisition violated Chinese law or regulation;
• absolute novelty standard, which considers not only publication of the invention anywhere in the world and public use inside of China, but now also public use outside of China;
• a requirement that any invention made in China must be first filed in China and, before filing in a foreign country,must obtain a foreign filing license (like the license required by the United States);
• all co-owners of an invention must consent for assigning the patent and licensing the invention to others;
• liberalizing the rules for granting a compulsory license where the patent hasn’t been exploited within three years after patent grant, when there has been anticompetitive actions by the patent owner, when public interest requires it, or when a developing country lacks ability to manufacture a medicament;
• exempts from infringement those activities related to regulatory review.

For further information:

News release at SIPO

Main points of the Third Amendment (draft)

Third Amendment and Pharmaceutical Companies (Jones Day)