On October 13, 2021 from 5:00 – 6:30 PM Pacific Time, Berkeley Law will be offering a free webinar to discuss developments in plant variety and agricultural IP protection in China.

Here are three important reasons you should consider attending:

If you follow plant variety issues: we have brought together some of the leading experts in the field, including users of the system, trade associations, and their advisors, as well as the USPTO to discuss this fast-emerging area.

If you follow Chinese agriculture, innovation, or IP developments: China’s plant variety regime receives little attention in the Western press, yet in recent years China has emerged as a leading user of the plant variety registration system, as well as the leading forum for litigation plant variety infringement disputes.  Moreover, China is committed to becoming a leader in innovative agriculture in the next several years.  

If you are curious about how China would protect IP without significant foreign pressure: Since plant variety protection is rarely a factor in high-level trade disputes, China’s efforts to improve plant variety protection also offer a window into how China intends its IP regime to serve its own interests and how it will advance these interests globally. We will explore the technical aspects of plant variety protection, how China’s PVP regime fits into China’s overall goals of advancing its IP system, and the various legislative and policy reforms now underway. 

The program should be accessible to experts in PVP and those with broad interests in China’s agriculture, science, or IP development.  Please join us!

Update of October 17, 2021: the video recording of this program is available here: http://www.kaltura.com/tiny/m5vd4. Note that the discussion around grace periods in the recording failed to mention relevant regulations regarding grace periods for plant varieties, notably Article 14 of the Plant Variety Regulations:

Article 14

Any plant variety in respect of which variety rights are granted shall have the characteristic of novelty. Novelty means that the propagating material of the new plant variety in respect of which variety rights are applied for has not been sold prior to the filing date of the application, or has not been for sale, with the consent of the breeder, for more than one year within the territory of China; the propagating material of vines, forest trees, fruit trees and ornamental plants must not have been for sale for more than six years, or the propagating material of other plant varieties for more than four years, in a foreign territory.

As always please consult counsel for specific legal advice.