ICC Issues Roadmap to a Worlwide Patent System

"As business, trade and the impact of technology become increasingly global, awareness of the value of intellectual assets grows and the very high costs of obtaining and litigating patents continue to increase, a strong worldwide cost-effective patent system becomes a very desirable objective. A truly worldwide patent system, giving rise to a single patent enforceable within every country within a single legal framework, would however raise major constitutional issues concerning a country's right to determine what commercial
acts are permissible within its borders and what its citizens are allowed to do in relation to local economic issues and imperatives. This is therefore unlikely in the short term but much can be done to harmonize patent grant and enforcement systems by resolving other issues, and by regionalizing patenting and patent enforcement systems." From the sixth edition of “Current and Emerging Intellectual Property Issues for Business: A Roadmap for Business and Policy Makers,� by the International Chamber of Commerce.