In a welcome development, Thailand is joining the Patent Convention treatment (PCT). It will be possible to file PCT applications in Thailand as of January 2010.
Phucket: Please note – PCT applications filed elsewhere prior to that date cannot be ratified in Thailand. Indeed, care must be taken to prevent the PCT application from becoming prior art, i.e. the Thailand application should be filed within 18 months from the priority, document of the PCT and within 12 months under Paris to claim priority.
Personally, I’ve never filed or prosecuted in Thailand. Indeed, I dont’ recal being asked by a client to quote for filing in Thailand, although apparently the firm has filed pharmaceutical applications there for various local ethical clients. I don’t imagine this new development will have much of an impact on my day-to-day work. Will there be a flood of Thai national phase applications into Israel? Who knows.
Do you feel this process will be open to abuse? If so, what measures can be taken to ensure the validity of applications?