CASRIP Newsletter - Spring/Summer 1998, Volume 5, Issue 2 The
Development of China's Intellectual Property Protection System
I. Legislative History of IP It is in the past fifteen years
that legislation of intellectual property (IP) has developed in
China. Before 1983, there were no special laws on the protection
of IP; however, China has since promulgated laws and regulations
on IP, including the Trademark Law, the Patent Law, the Anti-
Unfair Competition (Antimonopoly) Law, and the Copyright Law,
and has entered into major international treaties on IP. These
laws and conventions, together with the Constitution, the civil
law, the Criminal law and other related legal norms form the
complete system of IP in China. 1.Constitution (promulgated in
1982, amended in 1988 and 1993) The Constitution is the
fundamental law of a country. Due to its highest legal effect,
it is the legislative foundation for other laws and regulations,
and its essential principles are followed by administrative
departments when they enac