Speculations About Multilateral Patent Reforms of the Future.
On November 11, 2006, I had reported on a link to a (now removed) publication according to which patent authorities from Japan, the United States and Europe (aka Trilateral Co-operation) will begin discussions toward the introduction of a system for mutual recognition of patents. The related Summary of the 24th Trilateral Conference held in Tokyo on November 17, 2006, mentiones as follows:
"[...] The USPTO introduced a new work-sharing proposal for consideration and discussion in which Offices would focus on first-filed applications and take up second-filed applications only when search/examination information is available from the office of first filing.
The EPO and the JPO will contribute actively to the study of this possibility. [...]"
Read in some interpreting way, this might mean that they are mooting a procedure for rubber-stamping earlier examination results. But the statement appears to be quite vague, if not nebulous.
There appears to be another proposal to reform international patenting looming:
"[...] Bearing in mind the EPO's reservations, the Trilateral Offices will continue to discuss the JPO proposal for a New Route while recognizing the importance of constructively exploring other options for users.
The Trilateral Offices discussed a proposed Analogous New Route Pilot Project designed to evaluate the merits of the New Route framework. The JPO will further refine the proposal in view of the comments from the USPTO for the Offices to study further. [...]"
"[...] The New Route Proposal is an initiative of the Japanese Patent Office, which was presented to the Trilateral Summit of European, US and Japanese Patent Offices in Munich on November 17, 2005. [...]
Under the new route proposal, it will still be possible for applicants to obtain an extra 18 months for processing at the national or regional level provided certain steps are taken on filing. The applicant must, at the time of filing, notify the office of first filing (OF) of the intention to use the new route and conform to certain standards. The new route filing can either be a priority application or a non-priority application. In either case, publication occurs at 18 months from the priority date, followed by examination by the OF. The applicant must then pursue the application in one or more Offices of Second filing (OS) within 30 months from the priority date, where prosecution continues, taking into account the results from the OF. [...]
It is important that the patent system, if it is to make a positive economic contribution and enjoy the continued support of the public, must strike a fair balance between the rights of patent applicants and the rights of third parties who need to be able to conduct their business with a reasonable degree of certainty. We therefore have to consider the new route from the point of view of public interest, which the proposal fails to do. The main disadvantage from the point of view of the public is that yet another level of searching would be required to determine whether a third party might face patent problems in a particular country, and in the case of pending rights, it would introduce a further layer of uncertainty in the geographic scope of patent protection. As part of its responsibilities, WIPO ensures that PCT applications are published at 18 months. The PCT applications are searchable and available from a single source. [...]"
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Dipl.-Phys. Axel H Horns is Patentanwalt (German Patent Attorney),
European Patent Attorney as well as European Trade Mark Attorney. In particular, he is Member of:
reported on a link to a (now removed) publication according to which patent authorities from Japan, the United States and Europe (aka 
Trilateral Co-operation) will begin discussions toward the introduction of a system for mutual recognition of patents. The related 
