Take IP infringement cases to court

If intellectual property (IP) infringement occurs, foreign investors should not hesitate to bring their cases to trial, says a former judge. Judicial interpretations have constantly offered guidance on the enforcement standard that companies could look to.

On April 24, the Supreme People's Court unveiled its Annual Report on Intellectual Property Cases (2010)(知识产权案件年度报告) (2010) (Annual Report). This year, the list of landmark cases featured a high proportion of foreign elements, with five of them involving foreign parties. There is a marked increase of internet infringement disputes, and a growing prominence of key technologies and the strategic use of procedures. The Annual Report cases also touch on emerging areas of law, such as unfair competition in cyberspace.

Foreign-related cases have seen a rapid growth over the last few years. There were over 1,600 of these cases tried in the first instance in 2010 alone, said Cheng Yongshun, a retired senior judge of the IP Tribunal of Beijing High People's Court.