The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) published its Revised Draft Provisions Concerning Regulating Patent Application Behavior (Draft for Public Comment) (关于规范申请专利行为的若干规定修改草案[征求意见稿]) on May 6, 2021 (the “Draft Provisions”). The purpose of this […]
The NTE Report On Chinese IP And Its Relationships To Chinese Legal Developments

USTR’s recently released NTE report shows continuing lack of clarity over key Chinese legal terms. The report also declines to discuss commercial rule of law issues raised in last years Special 301 report. What role does commercial rule of law have in the Biden Administration’s trade diplomacy? The answer is unclear.
The WTO IP Cases That Weren’t
Does the WTO / TRIPS Agreement still have teeth on IP? This blog explores the possible claims that could be made involving TRIPS Agreement violations and China. The more important claims are complex, data-dependent, and would require a whole of government approach by the Biden adminisitration.
Treating the “Foreign” Differently in Trade Secret Enforcement
Both the proposed amendments to the Criminal Law and the administrative rules on trade secret enforcement establish differential treatment for trade secret enforcement when a foreign element is involved
IPO Comments on the Trade Secret Rules
The Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) has submitted bilingual comments to SAMR on the draft Trade Secret Rules 《商业秘密保护规定(征求意见稿) 》. The comments are found here and at the IPO website I blogged […]
Fact and Fiction in the US-China IP Trade War
The Asia Society of Northern California is sponsoring a free webinar October 8 from 5-6:30 PM PST on “Fact and Fiction in the US-China IP Trade War” as part of its “Seek […]
Translations of Civil Trade Secret and Criminal IP JI’s Available
The Gen Law Firm (己任律师事务所) has graciously provided us with translations of two recently released judicial interpretations with red-lining to compare with the prior public comment drafts. The civil trade secret judicial interpretation […]
Supreme People’s Court Releases Trade Secret JI
On September 11, 2020,the SPC released its trade secret JI on civil enforcement of trade secrets. Here is a link to a Chinese text comparing the final version with the draft released […]
SAMR Releases Draft Trade Secret Rules for Public Comment
On September 4, 2020, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) released Draft Trade Secret Protection Rules for public comment [商业秘密保护规定(征求意见稿)] including an accompanying explanation. Comments are due by October 18, 2020. […]
The IP Theft Nexus in the Houston Consulate Closing
What were the reasons for the closing of the Houston Chinese Consulate? This blog explores the various legal and political reasons for its closure as well as later discovered information on the involvement of the Houston Consulate in technology misappropriation.