7-8 May 2008, Beijing

Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council (SCLAO) in hosting a Roundtable to solicit opinions and experiences from Chinese and European experts on a number of questions of interest to the drafting team. This Roundtable provided a unique opportunity to support SCLAO and the patent legislation process, relying on a large number of Chinese and European experts to cover the specific topics.

The amended draft Patent Law is already under review by the SCLAO, and will be presented shortly to the National People's Congress (NPC) for discussion and final enactment. This Roundtable, hosted by SCLAO and chaired by Mr. Zhang Jianhua, Director General of Department of Education, Science, Culture and Public Health, SCLAO, aimed to share comprehensive information on the Chinese and European Patent Law systems and upcoming reforms; and to provide specific suggestions and comments on the Chinese patent legislation. The final draft for submission to the NPC is expected for Summer 2008. Therefore, this Roundtable was the last chance to comment on the draft law before submission and discussion at NPC-level.

The Roundtable was successful in providing a forum in which suggestions and comments could be provided to the patent law revision drafting team. This access to information has the broader effect of improving the understanding on both sides of the development of the Chinese patent system and the European experience in this area. The draft law subsequently submitted to the NPC reflected many aspects of the discussions that took place during this meeting. As part of a larger collaboration between IPR2 and LAO on the review of the Chinese Patent Law, this discussion and relationship was further consolidated during the EU-China Workshop on the Revision of the Chinese Patent Law in Harbin from 24-25 September 2008 and the Study Tour on the Revision of the Chinese Patent Law from 23 October to 1 November 2008 to Germany and Spain.

The experts included representatives of SCLAO, LAC, SIPO and Education, Science, Culture and Health Committee of NPC; Chinese academics from CASS, Renmin University, China University of Political Science and Law, Tsinghua University and Zhongnan University; representatives of Chinese patent associations and research centers; European academics, practitioners and officials.

The technical discussion covered the following specific areas:

• Litigation procedure for patent infringement
• Prescription for litigation of patent infringement
• Co-owned patent rights and licensing issues
• Patent invalidation procedures
• Patent enforcement
• Patents and the protection of genetic resources and traditional knowledge
• Measures for preventing abuse of patent rights

All-China Patent Agents Association (ACPAA)

This Roundtable was a closed meeting. For more information on the patent law revision, contact Mr Andreas Obst This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

For general information on IPR2, contact Ms Tamryn Barker This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

[IPR2 ref. CC1.IPA.003]