Update: The 15-day mail delay used in calculating deadlines will be removed effective January 20, 2024 in electronically filed (i.e., most) patent applications. During prosecution of a Chinese invention patent application (as distinct from a utility model application), the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) will issue over 10 notices over the typical course of the prosecution process. Most of these notices require responses with varying deadlines, which will be discussed further below.
Author: Aaron Wininger
Aaron Wininger is a Principal and Director of the China Intellectual Property at Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner.
China Releases Report on Development Status of the National Patent Agency Industry (2019)
On September 30, 2020, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released a report on the Development Status of the National Patent Agency Industry (2019) (全国专利代理行业发展状况(2019年)). 2019 highlights include China having 2,691 patent agencies compared to 796 agencies in 2010; 20,192 practicing patent agents compared to 6,437 in 2010; and 43,702 people registered for the patent agent qualification examination with 5,381 people passing.
China Announces Completion of Their Third Generation Nuclear Reactor Backed by Over a Thousand Patents
As reported by the South China Morning Post on September 28, 2020, China’s State Power Investment Corporation Limited (SPIC) has announced the completion of the development of their third generation nuclear reactor referred to as CAP 1400 or 国和一号. Based on AP1000 technology from Westinghouse, “the CAP1400 has two primary coolant loops that transfer the heat generated by the fission reaction of 235U in the reactor core to the steam generator (SG). Each loop consists of a hot leg, two cold …
China’s Supreme People’s Court Releases Guiding Opinions on Trial of Civil Cases Involving Intellectual Property Rights of E-commerce Platforms
On September 13, 2020, China’s Supreme People’s Court released the Guiding Opinions on Trial of Civil Cases Involving Intellectual Property Rights of E-commerce Platforms (关于审理涉电子商务平台知识产权民事案件的指导意见). The Opinions may make takedowns of infringing products sold on e-commerce platforms easier and more common. As Mark Cohen, prior U.S. IP Attaché in Beijing and now at Berkeley, stated, the “The Guiding Opinion should further help implement obligations set forth in Section 1 (E) of the Phase 1 Trade Agreement regarding ‘Piracy and Counterfeiting …