In Singapore, post-grant amendments are allowed at the discretion of the court or the Registrar. The amendments are assessed under Section 84(3) of the Patents Act. The court or the Registrar may allow the amendments to the specification of the patent if: (a) The amendment does not result in disclosing additional matter; or (b) The […]
Mandatory Recordal of IP License Agreements in Indonesia
The Ministry of Law and Human Rights (MoLHR) of Indonesia recently issued regulations outlining the procedure for recordal of IP license agreements in Indonesia. It should be noted that while the regulations were recently issued, the law requiring recordal of license agreements has been in place since 2000 (industrial designs), 2001 (trademarks and patents) and […]
India IP Policy, Patent Legislation: Amends Patent Rules to Expedite Grant
The Patent (Amendment) Rules, 2016 were implemented by the Indian Patent Office on 16 May 2016. The salient features of the said rules are as follows: Reduction of time to file response to First Examination Report (FER) The time allowed to respond to a FER for putting an application in order for grant has been […]
Laos IP Policy, Trademark Legislation: DIP Begins Accepting Multi-Class Applications
The Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of Laos began accepting multi-class applications as of February 1, 2016. On December 20, 2011, the DIP announced that Article 33 of the Intellectual Property Law of Laos would be revised to allow the filing of more than […]
Thailand Trademark Legislation: Amends Act
Amendments to the Thailand Trademark Act will take effect on 28 July 2016. The amended Act introduces amendments to the trademark registration process, extends its protective scope and revises the applicable deadlines and fees. A summary of the amendments to the Trademark Act is described in the table below: Changes Before After Amendment on 28 […]
Singapore – Patentable Subject Matter Clarified
After taking into consideration feedback from patent practitioners and policies of foreign patent offices that are relevant to Singapore, the Intellectual Property Office of the Singapore (IPOS) has released a revised version of the Examination Guidelines for Patent Applications, which contains amendments to the section concerning patentable subject matter. The guidelines state that the assessment […]
Vietnam – Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Program Commences in April 2016 for Japanese Patent Applications
Japan and Vietnam implemented a Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot program that took effect on 01 April 2016. In 2014, approximately 50% of the total filed applications at the NOIP remained pending and unexamined. To facilitate the reduction of backlog at NOIP and expedite the patent examination process, NOIP signed its first Patent Prosecution Highway […]
Myanmar Update : Trademark Practice
With significant changes in the political landscape of Myanmar (also known as Burma), there are similar expectations for corresponding changes in the economic and business practices as well. This further affects the expectations of IP holders to better protect their rights in this country. Currently, Myanmar is working with the World Intellectual Property office (WIPO) […]
Stringent Time Limits for Submitting Formal Documents in Thailand
The Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) of Thailand has imposed a more stringent time limit for submitting formal documents for patent applications effective 21 July 2015. Previously, patent applicants were allowed to file two 90-day extension requests, followed by a final 30-day extension request for submitting a notarized Power of Attorney, a Deed of Assignment […]
Impact of China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement on Intellectual Property System and Vice Versa
China-ASEAN free trade agreement has taken its full effect since 1 January 2010 and in terms of trade volume, creates the world’s third-largest free trade zone after European Economic Area and the North American Free Trade Area. This trade agreement between China and the 10 ASEAN countries, namely Laos, Vietnam, Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, […]