Patent Act Article 31

First-to-file principleWhere two or more patent applications are filed for the same invention, only the earliest application can be granted. The above shall not apply if the priority date claimed for the later-filed application is earlier than the filing date of the earlier application.If the filing date and the priority date referred to in the preceding paragraph are the same, the applicants shall be notified to reach an agreement with respect to the matter concerned. If such an agreement cannot be reached, none of the applications shall be granted. If the said patent applications are filed by the same applicant, the applicant shall be notified to select one patent application within a specified time period; failure to make a selection within the time period shall result in the rejection of all such patent applications.While the concerned applicants are in the process of reaching an agreement, the Specific Patent Agency shall require that these applicants report the results of the negotiation within an appropriate time period designated. If the said report is not provided within the specified time period, it shall be deemed that an agreement has not been reached.Where a patent application for an invention and a patent application for a utility model are filed separately in respect of the same creation, the provisions set forth in the preceding three paragraphs shall apply mutatis mutandis, except for the conditions stipulated in Article 32.