Qian, Ma; Roth, Berrit --- "EMPLOYEE INVENTIONS" [2014] ELECD 669; in Luginbuehl, Stefan; Ganea, Peter (eds), "Patent Law in Greater China" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2014) 108

Book Title: Patent Law in Greater China

Editor(s): Luginbuehl, Stefan; Ganea, Peter

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781781954836

Section: Chapter 7

Section Title: EMPLOYEE INVENTIONS

Author(s): Qian, Ma; Roth, Berrit

Number of pages: 15

Abstract/Description:

More than 90 per cent of all patent filings in Germany are based on inventions made by employees. Similar numbers can be expected for China, even though until 2008, the number of private inventions was still higher than the number of service inventions. Individual inventors working in their small private laboratories are on the decrease. Nowadays, expensive resources provided by an employer or the expertise of a working group are required to achieve groundbreaking patentable inventions. The Chinese Patent Act primarily regulates employee inventions. Further regulations concerning employee inventions can be found in the Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Act of the People’s Republic of China (‘Implementing Regulations’) and in the Several Opinions on Further Strengthening the Protection of Service Inventor’s Legal Interests and Promoting IPR (‘Intellectual Property Rights’) Implementation (Opinions) which were published on 26 November 2012 by the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) and 12 other authorities. Furthermore, different Chinese municipalities’ guidelines, for example, the Shanghai Implementing Measures on the Ownership of and Remuneration for Employee Inventions (Shanghai Measures) must be considered. Likewise, the Shanghai Higher People’s Court issued Guidelines on the Adjudication of Disputes Involving Rewards and Remuneration for the Inventors or Designers of Service Invention Creations (Shanghai Guidelines) on 25 June 2013. As the Shanghai Measures and the Shanghai Guidelines provide important and useful provisions and play an exemplary role for other municipalities’ guidelines they will be cited later on in this chapter. It should be noted, though, that they are not legally binding and will not be considered outside Shanghai.