Xiaofan Chen

Partner, Chinese Patent Attorney
Leeds
xchen@eip.com

Biography

Xiaofan is a qualified China Patent Attorney with more than 20 years’ experience in IP. Xiaofan’s practice focuses on both contentious and non-contentious strategic patent portfolio management, including client counselling on patent prosecution, dispute resolution/litigation and commercialisation advice. He has successfully represented international and Chinese clients in patent invalidation, patent infringement and administrative cases in China.

Xiaofan frequently provides clients with opinions on patent validity, patent infringement and freedom-to-operate analysis matters. He also advises on agreements for transferring or licensing patents, non-disclosure agreements/trade secret issues and commercial aspects of patent rights. Xiaofan’s experience and track record in contentious work brings a valuable dimension to the non-contentious patent prosecution and advisory work he undertakes for clients. His technical fields include mechanical engineering and manufacturing, laser imaging and printing/packaging technology, computer science, internet technology, e-commerce, and business methods. Xiaofan has been admitted to practice before the CNIPA since 2006 and is one of the first patent litigators to be officially registered with the Supreme People’s Court in China.

Recent Work
Publications
  • Why Daimler would have the upper hand if its patent fight with Nokia were taking place in China - Intellectual Asset Management (September 2020)
  • China dominates blockchain patent applications as regulations are streamlined - World IP Review (September 2020)
  • Time and data: striking a balance in China - Managing Intellectual Property (Spring 2020)
  • China establishes framework for advanced IP regime - IAM Yearbook 2020 (2020)
  • Patent term extensions on the horizon - Managing Intellectual Property (November/December 2019)
  • China’s innovation rise – patent landscape review and outlook - IAM Yearbook 2019 (2019)
  • Creating an effective FinTech IP strategy - Managing Intellectual Property (September 2018)
  • Big steps, long strides: China’s progress on intellectual property rights - Asian-Mena Counsel, Volume 15, Issue 8 (2018)
  • Green light for business method patents - Lexology (March 2017)
  • The China Chapter - The Legal 500 & The In-House Lawyer Intellectual Property Comparative Legal Guide (September 2018)
  • Book translation: Intellectual Property Strategy (Author: John Palfrey, The MIT Press, 2012), Chongqing University Press (2015)
Education
  • MSc in Information Technology - University of Aberdeen (2024)
  • Graduate Diploma of Law (GDL) - College of Law, York (2008)
  • LLM (Intellectual Property) - University of Edinburgh (2003)
  • MPhil in Publishing Studies - University of Stirling (2002)
  • BEng in Printing and Packaging Engineering - Xi’an University of Technology, China (1994)
Languages Spoken
  • Chinese (Mandarin)
  • English
Career History
  • Partner at EIP (2024 — Present)
  • Partner at AWA (2017 — 2024)
  • Partner at Liu Shen & Associates (2008 — 2017)
  • Patent Attorney at Jeekai & Partners (2003 — 2007)
  • Technical Support Engineer at ECRM (1997 — 2001)
  • Printing system technician at Xi’an Xinhua Printing House (1994 — 1997)
Specialisms
  • Digital: Applied maths & cryptography, Consumer electronics, Digital health, Fintech, Gaming and graphics, Software, Video codecs
  • Dynamics: Mechanics
  • HealthTech: Digital health, Medical devices, Surgical tools and implants
Awards
  • Intellectual Asset Management – IAM Patent 1000: Recommended Individual for Prosecution (2019 - 2024)
  • Intellectual Asset Management –IAM Patent 1000: Recommended Individual for Transaction (2018)
  • The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific: Recommended Lawyer (2020 -2024)

The latest from

Xiaofan Chen

AI and Bitstreams at the Core of China’s Patent Update
28 May 2025
On April 30, 2025, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released a draft amendment of the Patent Examination Guidelines (for public comment), proposing further revisions to...

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