In the IPR Week in late April, the Supreme People's Court of China released the annual report on IPR protection. In the report, several highlights to note are:
Civil IPR Cases Continued Their Meteoric Growth at an increase of 46% over 2011.
Criminal Cases Showed an Even More Rapid Growth, at an increase of 130% in judicial adjudication.
Provisional Measures are Still under Utilized. Of the nearly 90,000 civil IPR cases, there were only 27 applications for a preliminary injunction, with a grant rate of 83%. Administrative Cases Also on the Rise at an increase of 20% from 2011.
Foreigners Play a Significant Role in Administrative Litigation on IPR Validity. There was an increase of 8% in 2012 in foreigners using the civil IPR system. Also, foreigners constituted 47% of administrative cases, for a total of 1,349.
Transparency and Commercial Rule of Law Are Improving. The report notes that 47,422 IPR cases had been posted on the Supreme People’s Court case network through year-end 2012. The report also highlights numerous provincial-level local initiatives in improving IPR adjudication.
(Source: China IP News)
