Intellectual Property Law Research - (Volume 3)

Author: Wang Chanmin / Huang Wushuang, Editors
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-02-01
Features: The Intellectual Property Research Center of East China University of Political Science and Law publishes two volumes of Intellectual Property Law Research annually. Volume 2 was published in September 2005, Volume 3 in December 2005, and the call for manuscripts for Volume 4 is currently underway. This is part of the achievements of the center since its establishment. Recently, there have been frequent new developments in China's intellectual property judicial sphere. Here are three examples.
First, China is set to introduce new judicial interpretations on intellectual property adjudication. To address some prominent issues in China's intellectual property adjudication, the Supreme People's Court has drafted a judicial interpretation covering anti-unfair competition, plant variety infringement, conflicts of intellectual property rights, and music television, and has been soliciting public feedback since November 18, 2005. This interpretation will fill some gaps in China's intellectual property legislation and strengthen judicial protection of intellectual property.
Second, China's intellectual property judicial protection is performing well. The number of various intellectual property cases accepted and concluded by Chinese courts has increased significantly. Statistics show that from January to October 2005, Chinese local courts accepted 11,390 first-instance civil intellectual property cases (excluding anti-unfair competition cases), a 27.98% increase compared to the same period in 2004. First-instance administrative intellectual property cases accepted were 506, up 10.48% year-on-year. Additionally, 406 cases of intellectual property infringement crimes were accepted, a 24.54% increase year-on-year; 911 cases of crimes involving the production and sale of counterfeit or substandard goods were accepted, up 29.22% year-on-year; and 1,562 cases of illegal business operation crimes were accepted, up 36.90% year-on-year. In the latter two categories of criminal cases, many also involve intellectual property infringement issues. The increased judicial efforts reflect China's ongoing efforts to enhance the level of intellectual property judicial protection.
Third, intellectual property judgment documents will be made publicly available online. According to the National Intellectual Property Adjudication Work Symposium held in Xiamen, Fujian, in November 2005, higher courts across China will gradually make all intellectual property judgment documents within their jurisdictions publicly available online. Higher courts lacking technical conditions may send electronic copies of such documents to the Civil Third Tribunal of the Supreme People's Court for online publication. This practice will further improve the transparency of China's intellectual property adjudication.
The above three pieces of news are all related to the field of intellectual property adjudication and reflect, from one perspective, the continuous advancement of China's intellectual property legal system. However, China's intellectual property legal system still faces a long way to go and many issues to resolve. The dispute over two "Mengniu" trademark and business names—Mengniu Dairy and Mengniu Liquor—reported by the Legal Daily on November 21, 2005, in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, directly relates to intellectual property law.