Intellectual Property

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Authored by He Jing (hejing@anjielaw.com) at AnJie Law Firm

The Beijing court authorities published 18 judge candidates for the newly established Beijing IP Court.  This indicates a significant step towards the official launch of the new court.  A week ago, the names of the president and two vice presidents of the new court were also published.  People widely believe a strong judge leadership is in place for the Beijing specialized IP court.

After an expedited legislative process over the last nine months, China’s legislature passed a bill on August 31 announcing that three specialised IP courts are to open in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.  The new courts are scheduled to open by the end of 2014.  Now with the appointment of the new judges, Beijing IP Court will officially take cases as early as November 6, 2014.

Continue Reading The Launch of Specialized IP Court Indicates Significant Progress in IPR Enforcement

Authored by He Jing (hejing@anjielaw.com) at AnJie Law FIrm

On October 9, 2014, China’s Supreme People’s Court issued a new judicial interpretation regarding online infringement of personal rights. This judicial interpretation is intended to deal with the increasing problem of online defamation and unfair competition activities in China. The wide use of social media, such as microblogs and WeChat, has dramatically increased the risks of, and damages caused by, defamatory statements and illegal disclosures of privacy.Continue Reading Supreme People’s Court issues rules on online infringement of personal rights

Authored by He Jing (hejing@anjielaw.com) at AnJie Law Firm

After an expedited legislative process over the last 9 months, China’s legislature passed a bill on August 31 announcing that three specialized IP courts will open up in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.  Supreme People’s Court is in charge of the actual operational details and has vowed to have these courts up and running by the end of 2014.  All the three specialized IP courts will be intermediate-level courts, meaning that they will handle many cases as the court of first instance and the decisions may be appealed to provincial-level higher people’s courts. Continue Reading Analysis of the New Specialized Courts in China

Authored by Dr. Zhan Hao (zhanhao@anjielaw.com) and Li Xiang at AnJie Law Firm

Introduction

There is a joke in reference to the relationship between antitrust and intellectual property and the conflicts between them, which goes, “It is not easy to marry the innovation bride and the competition groom and some have argued that such a marriage will unavoidably lead to divorce.” Nowadays it is not a problem if there is an intrinsic conflict between them. In China, the principle that both of the two legal regimes serve the common purpose of promoting innovation and enhancing consumer welfare is broadly acknowledged.Continue Reading Abuse of Dominance in Relation to Intellectual Property: From China’s Perspective

Authored by Dr. Zhan Hao (zhanhao@anjielaw.com) and Li Xiang at AnJie Law Firm

Introduction

There is a joke in reference to the relationship between antitrust and intellectual property and the conflicts between them, which goes, “It is not easy to marry the innovation bride and the competition groom and some have argued that such a marriage will unavoidably lead to divorce.” Nowadays it is not a problem if there is an intrinsic conflict between them. In China, the principle that both of the two legal regimes serve the common purpose of promoting innovation and enhancing consumer welfare is broadly acknowledged.Continue Reading Abuse of Dominance in Relation to Intellectual Property: From China’s Perspective

Authored by Dr. Zhan Hao (zhanhao@anjielaw.com) from AnJie Law Firm

On June 11, 2014, China’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) released the latest draft [1] of regulations designed to implement the Anti-Monopoly Law (AML) with respect to intellectual property rights—Rules of the Administration of Industry and Commerce on the Prohibition of Abuses of Intellectual Property Rights for the Purposes of Eliminating or Restricting Competition (Rules), to solicit public opinions. The Rules describe the authority’s enforcement policies, criteria of proof, and types of acceptable evidence in its analysis of suspected anti-competitive conduct involving IPR. The period of calling for public opinions will expire on July 10, 2014.Continue Reading SAIC Moves Closer to Antitrust Rules for IP

Authored by Arthur X. Dong (dongxiao@anjielaw.com) & Li Meng from AnJie Law Firm

For the last ten years, whether an arbitration clause such as “any disputes arising from, or in connection with, the execution of this agreement shall be resolved by arbitration” may be applied to an infringement claim has been a topic of heated discussion among the legal practitioners in China.  This is a matter of great concern to arbitration practitioners in China because the case history of Supreme People’s Court has failed to clarify whether the courts or the arbitration tribunal should have jurisdiction over the infringement claims. Continue Reading Is an Infringement Claim within the Scope of Arbitration Clause under Laws of PRC?

Authored by He Jing, AnJie Law Firm and Jerry Xia, Honeywell China

While some feel that damages awards in China are still insufficient, recent cases show that the courts are becoming much more sophisticated in calculating damages and awards are increasing – especially in cases of wilful infringement

China’s newly amended Trademark Law is due to come into effect on May 1 2014.  One of the most significant changes for many brand owners and trademark professionals will be the increase in damages in trademark infringement cases. The law will raise the amount of statutory damages to Rmb3 million – almost six times the previous limit. It will also recognise punitive damages and ease the burden of proof for brand owners in establishing damages. Continue Reading Chinese courts ratchet up damages awards for wilful infringement

Authored by Cheng Bing (chengbing@anjielaw.com)

2013 was a milestone year for the development of China Intellectual Property Rights.  During 2013, copyright, patent and trademark legislation were all revised.  The judicial practice picked up speed as well, with cutting-edge precedents that established protections in trade secrets and other IPR fields. In summary, the Chinese IPR regime enjoyed a rapid growth in 2013. Continue Reading 2013 China IP Review

Interview with Cheng Bing (chengbing@anjielaw.com), He Jing (hejing@anjielaw.com)

Q: What is bad-faith registration of a trademark?

A: The term “bad faith registration of a trademark” means the act of using improper means to preemptively register the trademark of another that is already being used and has a significant influence in the relevant sector, for the purpose of profiting from it.

Article 31 of the Trademark Law specifies that, “An application for the registration of a trademark may not prejudice the existing prior right of any third party nor may improper means be used to preemptively register a third party’s trademark which is already in use and which has a certain degree of influence”

Q: What judicial remedies are available once the bad-faith registration of a trademark has occurred?

A: Pursuant to the current Trademark Law and related regulations, the main means of judicial remedies available to the rights holder are as follows:Continue Reading Judicial Remedies from Bad-faith Registrations of Trademarks