Report

Chapter 1 : Standard Patent System (64 submissions received)
1. What benefits will an OGP system bring to Hong Kong? Will an OGP system promote local innovation and enhance patent quality?
Patent Attorney)
(c) Jeffrey McLean (Registered Australian
Patent Attorney)
(d) James Wan (Registered Australian
Patent Attorney, Registered New
Zealand Patent Attorney, Registered
Singapore Patent Attorney)
(e) Michael Flint (Registered Australian
Patent Attorney, Registered New
Zealand Patent Attorney)
to be a big problem. The rampant abuse of the patent system discourages
innovation if the accused could only show the patents to be invalid via
expensive court proceedings. He considers there is more likely to be abuse
when patent offices with poor novelty search usually grant a much broader
patent than the ones with good prior art search facilities and argues that it
would be unfair to the general public in this regard; and
(d) in order to prevent abuse of the system, he suggests requiring applicants for
Hong Kong patents to declare that (i) the patent is believed to be valid; and (ii)
all prior art known to him but not cited during substantive examination of the
corresponding designated application shall be disclosed to the defendant prior
to legal proceedings, with costs penalties for failing to do so.
(f) Owen Gee (Registered Australian
Patent Attorney, Registered New
Zealand Patent Attorney)
(g) Michael Lin (Registered US Patent
Attorney)
(h) Chin-Wah Tsang (UK Chartered Patent
Attorney)
Chris Murray is against the setting up of an OGP system because little
manufacturing is done in Hong Kong and no high volume products are
manufactured for the Hong Kong market only. The value of a standalone Hong
Kong patent is minimal and, hence, the costs involved are unjustifiable.
QPA Group emphasises that although the potential benefits of an OGP system
include enhanced public awareness of patents and intellectual property rights, which
may remind the public of “innovation”, an OGP system alone will not promote local
innovation.
(i) Eric C F Lam (UK Chartered Patent
Attorney)
King & Wood () (law
firm)
QPA Group believes that the introduction of an OGP system in Hong Kong will not
enhance the quality of Hong Kong patents as the three existing designated patent
offices are already providing high quality examinations.
From the experience of members of QPA Group:
& (“Song & Chan”):
(a) they are yet to have any Hong Kong local clients who pursue patent rights
suggest that an OGP system in Hong Kong would be of any benefit to them;
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