The Provisions on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Administrative Cases Involving the Granting and Confirmation of Trademark Rights (Provisions) released by the Supreme People's Court (SPC) on January 11, 2017 is likely the single biggest legal development in the trademark regime since the PRC Trademark Law was last amended in 2013. The SPC has taken the unusual step of announcing five recent decisions by itself and the Beijing High Court in which the courts' analyses and reasoning are consistent with certain sections of the Provisions. These cases combined with the SPC's announcement would be helpful for understanding the Provisions and also indicate the SPC's focus on its application in trademark administrative cases.

According to the announcement, the Provisions serve two key goals that would be welcomed by scholars and commentators. They intend to clarify legal standards in different areas of the law governing trademark procurement and opposition/invalidation, as well as deter trademark squatting and bad faith registrations. Due to their importance, the Provisions are expected to provide important guidance for future trademark-related disputes. But there are nonetheless a number of unresolved issues, and it remains to be seen how they will be addressed by the courts.

Invalidation grounds

The interpretation of Article 10.1.8 of the Trademark Law in Article 5 of the Provisions has gained wide attention since its release. This is because Article 10.1.8 has become a popular vehicle for petitioners in invalidation actions against the trademarks that are registered for over five years. As the grounds for invalidation against over-five-year-old trademarks are limited under the Trademark Law, the petitioners frequently resorting to Article 10.1.8 as a ground for invalidation, arguing that the registration has negative influence on the public interest and public order. In practice, the judicial decisions have been largely inconsistent in the application of Article 10.1.8.