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claims, any drawings referred to in the description or claim and an abstract. We have however provided in Clause 92(3) that all of these should comply with the EPC requirements so that for the purposes of any proceedings in which the validity of the petty patent is put in question these matters can be taken into account. (Clause 92)
13.28.
In line with Clause 5 which has taken note of the requirements of the EPC and the proposals for harmonisation worldwide we have set out the minimum requirements which are required to obtain a date of filing of a petty patent application. (Clause 93)
13.29.
The procedural requirements set out in Part XVI of the proposed Patents Bill envisage the possibility of filing all the requirements at the time of application. However provided that the minimum requirements are complied with, the Registrar will give a date of filing and will then allow time for the remaining formal requirements to be complied with. These administrative requirements are compatible with the provisions contained in Part II and by avoiding providing for two entirely separate administrative systems should assist both applicants and the Registrar. (Clauses 92 to 100)
13.30. The applicant is required to file a search report from an authorised searching authority in support of his application but the Registrar will be required to allow the applicant time in which to file this. It is proposed that the Rules will provide which searching authorities will be authorised but it is envisaged that this would include both government authorities and commercial organisations which undertake such searches. (Clause 92 (2)(b))
13.31.
We consider, for the reasons set out in paragraphs 8.12 to 8.18, that the primary language of the proposed patents system should be English. One of the aims of the proposed patent system is to encourage overseas businessmen to continue to invest and bring their technology into Hong Kong. The proposed petty patent system is however likely to attract Hong Kong businessmen requiring protection in Hong Kong only. We consider therefore that applicants for a petty patent should be able to file applications in Chinese. However, in order to be compatible with both the existing system and the proposed Patents Bill and to enable the dissemination worldwide of the technical information contained in petty patents, we have provided that a translation into English will be required. (Clause 92(2)(d)).
Role of the Registrar
13.32.
The Registrar will be required to enter the petty patent application in the register and to grant the petty patent providing the formal requirements are complied with. He will in particular only be required to establish that the specification appears on the face of it to contain a description of the invention, one or more claims and any drawings referred to in the description or the claims. He will not have to be satisfied that they do in fact do so. In particular he will not be required to establish that there is in fact only one claim. As regards the priority documents the Registrar would be required to examine these not so as to establish their validity but in order merely to be satisfied that, on the face of it, they support the claimed date of priority. (Clause 97)
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