(1) For patents for invention and utility models, the definition of infringement has been amended to include offers for sale of infringing articles.

(2) The right of appeal to a court from a rejection of an application or revocation of a right has been expanded from the previous situation where such appeals were possible only with respect to patents for inventions to cover utility models and designs.

(3) Prior to the amendments no formal way of obtaining a preliminary injunction or similar remedy for patent infringement in China. This changed with effect from July 1, 2001 since when new Article 61 permits a patentee to seek an order requiring an apparent infringer to suspend its activities and preserve the relevant property in cases where the patentee "can provide any reasonable evidence that his right is being infringed or that such infringement is imminent and any delay in stopping the acts is likely to cause irreparable harm to his legitimate rights". The patentee may be required to give a security and will have to institute full proceedings for patent infringement within fifteen days of the court having given him a temporary remedy.

(4) China has an "innocent infringer" provision in its statute. Formerly remedies were not available against one who did not know that the product he was selling or using was patented. With effect from July 1, 2001, this defense will be confined to safeguarding from an award of damages a party "who can prove that he obtained the product from legitimate channels of distribution"

(5) The method of calculating damages has been amended so that increased damage awards may be possible. Under the amended law, the amount of damages for infringing a patent will be calculated according to the patentee's loss caused by the infringement or the infringer's profits derived from the infringement. If it is difficult to calculate both of these, an appropriate royalty will be awarded.

(6) The grounds for challenging the validity of a design have been extended to include challenges on the basis that the design is an infringement of another's copyright or trademark.

(7) The statutory requirement which exists at present to advise the patent office of foreign search and examination results at the time of requesting examination, has been be replaced by a provision enabling the patent office to request such documents, so that it will be necessary to supply such documents only when specifically requested by an examiner.

(8) Maintenance fees will no longer be payable during the pendency of patent applications. Instead it will be necessary to pay a sum corresponding to the accumulated annuities for the period during which the application was pending in order to obtain grant of the patent.

(9) In litigation relating to utility models, the tribunal before which the litigation is pending may require the owner of the utility model right to submit a submit a search report issued by the patent office relating to the novelty of the subject matter of the utility model.