Seattle Trademark Lawyer

As advertised, on Friday Prof. Zhang Guangliang presented his views about “Intellectual Property Enforcement in China — From the Perspective of International Companies” at the King County Bar Association (STL preview here).

His presentation was informative. Here are some highlights — provided by someone who has worked as a professor, practitioner, and chief judge of the Beijing Intermediate People’s Court, which decides many intellectual property disputes:

• China’s First Intermediate People’s Court has 40 intellectual property law judges, and 30 court clerks.
• In 2010, Chinese courts accepted 8,460 new trademark cases in the “first instance” — a 22.5% increase over the volume of cases heard in 2009. Chinese courts heard 1,131 unfair competition cases (which include some types of trademark cases) in the first instance — a 12% increase over 2009. (Chinese courts allow the losing party to re-try the case in the “second instance,” the result of which usually results in the final disposition.)
• The vast number of IP cases involve only Chinese litigants. In 2010, there were only 1,369 IP cases closed that involved a foreign party, which was about the same number as in 2009.
• Chinese courts are authorized to award attorney’s fees to the prevailing party in IP cases. Prof. Guangliang said Chinese rates are less than U.S. rates, but are still expensive.
• Interestingly, an apology from the trademark infringer is a statutory remedy that’s also available.
• Chinese courts do not require the exchange of discovery, but they do allow for the exchange of evidence before trial.
• China is considering amending its trademark statute. Currently, talks are focused on (1) reducing the amount of time to register a new trademark, and (2) strengthening trademark protection, including increasing the amount of money authorized as statutory damages to remedy infringement (currently, the maximum amount is RMB 500,000 (approximately $80,000) to RMB 1,000,000).
• Prof. Guangliang suggested that U.S. companies seeking to enforce their IP rights in China should file their claim in a court that’s experienced in deciding IP cases, such as the First Intermediate People’s Court in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou. He also suggested finding an experienced IP attorney (rather than a generalist or law professor) who speaks good English.

Those interested in these highlights also may be interested in STL’s summary of the talk China’s chief justice gave earlier this year (post here).