Tao Kaiyuan, member of the Standing Committee of the CPPCC National Committee and vice president of the Supreme People's Court

During the two sessions this year, Tao Kaiyuan, member of the Standing Committee of the CPPCC National Committee and vice president of the Supreme People's Court, submitted a proposal about several key issues related to the fourth revision of the Patent Law. In his proposal, Tao suggests that the leading role of judicial protection of patent trials should be given full play; a litigation mechanism that conforms to the characteristics of patents should be established; attention should be given to the connection between legal texts and actual operational effects; and the unity and coordination of the legal system should be ensured.

With the economic transformation and growth, the importance of intellectual property has become increasingly prominent. In his keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia, General Secretary Xi Jinping noted: Strengthening the protection of intellectual property is of paramount importance, and it is also the biggest incentive to enhance China's economic competitiveness.

Since the reform and opening up, intellectual property in China has undergone a historic leap-forward and started from scratch. The country’s volume of trademark and patent application has ranked the first for several consecutive years among all countries in the world. There is no doubt that China is now a real intellectual property player in the world and has achieved remarkable success.

In an interview with China Trial, Tao said that currently, China is in a crucial period of shifting from a major intellectual property player to a strong intellectual property player. The judicial protection system for intellectual property continues to be improved, with long-term progress and remarkable achievements made in judicial protection, as well as improvements made in the credibility and international influence of judicial protection. Against this backdrop, the fourth revision of the Patent Law should adhere to the principles of problem-orientation, matching judicial needs, and conforming to the tradition of patent protection as well as international rules. By that, Tao proposed the following four specific recommendations:

First, the revision of the Patent Law should give full play to the leading role of judicial protection in trials related to patents.

Second, a litigation mechanism that conforms to the characteristics and laws of patents should be established.

Third, the revision of the Patent Law should focus on the connection between the provisions of the legal text and the actual operational effects.

Fourth, the revision of the Patent Law must ensure the unity and coordination of the legal system.

March 18, 2019

Source: China Trial