Compilation of the Legal Instruments on China’s Accession to the World Trade Organizations
I. Amendments to Laws
concerning Intellectual Property Rights
To meet
the requirements related to WTO accession, the Chinese government has amended
or reformulated laws,
local regulations and regulative documents to bring the relevant laws
concerning intellectual property rights into consistency with WTO TRIPS. A
complete combing through of IPR laws was carried out before
Following are the main
amendments to the aforesaid laws.
1. Amendments
to the Patent Law and its Implementing Regulations
Inventions
in almost all technological fields are provided with a twenty-year patent
protection. The scope of protection for process patent
is broadened to the products acquired
directly through this method. The right to
prohibit unauthorized importation or “offering for sale” are added
and the term of protection for industrial design
patent (including design patent for textiles) adjusted
to 10 years.
Amendments
of to laws
concerning intellectual property rights (IPR).
To meet
the requirements
related to need of the entry
into the WTO
accession, the Chinese
government have has already
amended or re-stipulateformulated laws,
local regulations and regulative documents to gear the relevant IPR laws concerning
intellectual property right to WTO’s TRIPS.
For instance, China has made
amendments to the Patent LawPatent
law as early
as September 4, 1992, and
for the second time on August 25, 2000. The law of on Trade
Marks has been was amended
on February 22, 1993 and on October 27, 2001. The Copyright LawCopyright
law has been was passedstipulated on
September 7, 1990 and revised on October 7, 2001.
In addition, China has laid
down a series of laws and regulations concerning the intellectual property, such
as the Regulations on New Floral Species Protection and the Regulations on The cCustoms Protection over thef Intellection Intellectual Property Rights.
The fFollowing is are the main
amendments on the foresaid laws.
ⅰ Amendments
to the Patent laws and its
implementation rules
The inventions in almost
all technological fields are provided with a twenty-year patent protection. The
scope of method method-patent protection is
enlarged to the products manufactured directly through this method. The
amendments additionally approve the right to importation and promise sale and
adjust the protective period of exterior exterior-design patent (plane
textile design patent) to be 10 years.
ⅱ2.
Amendments to the Trademarks
Law
The amendments enlarge the
scope ofregistrability for trademarks which are entitled to
registration and legal protectionis, expanded to include colour combinations and three-ddimensional objects (3-D
trademarks). logos included. Service trademarks receive
the same are
equally treated protection as commodity goods trademarks. Moreover, well-known
trademarks are provided with
particular
protectionfor
famous trademarks, and geographical
indications are
protected as identifying trademarks. as a protection for geographical logos.
ⅲ3.
Amendments to the Copyright
LawCopyright
lLaw
Computer programs and compilations of data The amendments provideare
protected as literary works for 50 years a fifty-year protection period for computer
software and data compilations. The copyright protection includes the protection forcovers technical measures and copyright
management information. The
amendments allow the cCopyright owners of cinematic
work and computer software programs
are entitled to the rental rightsthe right to lease.
ⅳ4. Stipulation Formulation of relevant Relevant laws Laws and regulationsRegulations
Laws
Similar protection is
provided for new varieties
of plants as provided for patents: 20
years for vines, woods, fruit trees and ornamentals, and 15 years for other plants. Special protections protection with a period term of 10 years are is also provided forto layout lay-out designs of integrated circuits, and faanti-unir-competition protection for to undisclosed information.
ⅴ5.
Enforcement against Suspected of the intellectual
property rightsIPR against the
iInfringements
Judicial
protection is available in case of suspected
the infringements of on intellectual property rights, judicial
protections as are provided, such as putting a
banpreliminary injunction and securing of
proofsaving. Judicial protections reviews are also provided available
after final administrative
decisions in respect of
procurementapplications, maintenance, cancellations, oppositions or nullification of the intellectual property rights against the final administrative
decisions.
After
the WTO, the State Council revised
the Implementing
Regulations
of
of the Trademark Law of
the PRC,,
and the Implementing Regulations ofof
the the
Copyright
Law of
the PRC and the Regulations on the Protection
of Computer
Software.
The Judicial Interpretation by the Supreme Court on Jurisdictions Over
Trademark Cases and the Scope of Law Applications,
the Judicial Interpretation by the Supreme Court on the Application of
Law for Trials over Trademark Civil Disputes,
and the Judicial Interpretation by the Supreme Court on the Application of Law
for Trials over Copyright Civil Disputes were adopted.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court straightened out relevant rules and regulationsregulative documents, thus setting up a universalunified, perfect complete and transparent Chinese legal
system of intellectual property rights in line with the needs of socialism socialist economy and the rules of the the WTO.
Ⅱ
Legislation of
on patent Patent
protection
Protection
in
Shanghai
On
??eleventh11th Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress of Shanghai ??? approv passed the Regulations
of of
on the Protection
of Patents, which
took effect on measurement
step
taken by
the Shanghai municipal
Municipal government Government to enforce strengthen patent protection after the WTO. It has helped establish