China Law Blog

Isn't there an international patent application that gives a patent holder in a signatory country legal precedence, even if they don't actually have a patent app on file in other signatory countries. I know there is a 1 1/2 year window from the filing of a US patent and international patent app. What's the story? It costs me money to ask my attorney ;-)

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/16/business/16trade.php?page=1

nh,

The story is that you should call in your patent attorney because this is an area where neither us nor other non-patent lawyers should mess around. The other day, I read a 70+ page US government brochure on patents, just so I would know enough to be able to help our clients know when to call in a patent lawyer. Well even that brochure, aimed at the general public, was in places too complicated for me. There are all sorts of pitfalls for the unwary here and we don't mess around with it.

I suppose it is of not much priority because one of the things my patent attorney told me was that that for international filings, an inventor would be well advised to only file in countries where they knew they could get their day in court and China would not be one of those places. You can highlight wins for major companies, but in more than a few cases those were paper victories and the Chinese party did not actually pay any compensation nor ceased their activities, and unless you are a big company, most people don't have the resources to fight that kind of uphill battle.

Just to round out the discussion...
The Paris Convention gives you priority in any other signatory country - yes, even in China, as NH suggested. This is not an 'international patent' there is no such thing.
Another international convention - the Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT) is a process by which you can file a single application which will eventually find its way into each country you designate - as an application. An 'international patent'is never granted - it's simply a way to (a) delay the date at which you enter each country (to delay costs), and (b) streamline the application process across many countries. (Also making validity searching easier for each country patent office.)
The 18 month date referred to by NH is the date at which the original application will publish. However, by then (as per the first para above) you have lost the right to claim priority.
I disagree with your patent attorney's comment about the choice of countries to file in. This is an antiquated view of patents. They are assets which can be monetized in many ways, and should rarely be enforced.
Please feel free to shoot me an email if you want any clarification.