Enforcing your rights – IP Focus

More multinational companies (MNCs) are realising that, as an indispensable part of a global IP strategy, the importance of successfully enforcing IP rights in China cannot be overstressed. In addition to administrative remedies, initiating an IP infringement lawsuit in China is widely considered a feasible yet challenging measure for enforcing IP rights.

Understanding the broader picture and getting an update on the most important developments of IP litigation in China in 2013 will benefit the decision makers at MNCs and help them to plan a comprehensive global IP strategy.

Overview of infringement cases

In 2013, there were 6,523 completed patent cases, of which 6,311 involved only domestic parties and only 212 (3%) involved foreign parties.

Among all the foreign related cases, the US took the lead with 37 cases, while Great Britain followed closely with 36, and Japan and France came next with 19 and 11 cases respectively.

The win rate of the patentee tells a more interesting story. According to the statistical data of 3,362 Chinese courts' decisions (updated on April 2 2014) collected by Darts-IP Case Law, in which patent infringement was actually confirmed by the judges, the win rates for invention and utility model-related cases are worth noting.

Table 1. Court decisions on patent infringement cases