Hear from our expert discuss the recent amendments to the Chinese Patent Law which comes into effect 1 June, 2021.
Welcome to the first of Rouse's intellectual property law podcasts. Doug Clark, Rouse's Global Head of Dispute Resolution and author of Patent Litigation in China talks about amendments to the Chinese Patent Law that will take effect from 1 June 2021.
Doug will discuss the main amendments to the law; changes in protection for pharmaceuticals and how they fit in with recent developments in patent litigation in China.
The key amendments are:
- Design patents: term extended to 15 years from 10 years and partial designs allowed
- Statutory damages increased to 5 million - in line with the new Trademark and Copyright laws
- Punitive damages introduced - up to 5 times the damages awarded
- Limitation period now 3 years - matches the new Civil Code
- Changes to rules regarding evidence making it easier to prove cases
- New provision regarding patent abuse - to be dealt with as part of Anti-Monopoly Law
The changes to the protection for pharmaceuticals include:
- Patent term extensions to be allowed
- Patent linkage system is to be introduced.
The changes fit in with the many improvements in the system including
- Establishment of IP Courts and Tribunals in 2014
- Establishment of the SPC IP Chamber in 2019
Doug tells us that he can say for sure we will see a lot more patent litigation in China in coming years.
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