On November 10, 2020, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) published Draft Amendments to Patent Examination Guidelines (referred to “Draft” hereafter) and solicited public opinions by December 10, 2020.  …
Continue Reading DRAFT AMENDMENTS TO PATENT EXAMINATION GUIDELINES

On 11 November 2020, lawmakers at the 23rd session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee deliberated and voted to adopt the Decision on Revising the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, marking the completion of the decade-long third amendment to the Copyright Law (hereinafter referred to as the “Amendment”). The newly amended Copyright Law (hereinafter referred to as the “2020 Copyright Law”) consists of 67 articles in six chapters, and shall come into force as of 1 June 2021.
Continue Reading The Amended Copyright Law and Its Potential Implications

On November 16, 2020, the Supreme People’s Court (“SPC”) released Several Provisions of Supreme People’s Court on Evidence in Intellectual Property Civil Litigation (“Provisions”). The Provision consists of 33 Articles and has gone into effect on November 18, 2020. On the whole, the Provision is a summary of intellectual property judicial practice, perfecting regulations in relation to evidence submission and obstruction, evidence preservation and forensic appraisal, evidence cross-examination and recognition, damage compensation, etc., so as to appropriately reduce the burden of proof by right holders and effectively resolve problems of “difficulty in adducing evidence” and “high enforcement cost” encountered by intellectual property rights holders in civil litigations. Thus, it is of positive significance to strengthen judicial protection for intellectual property rights. The main contents of the Provision are analyzed as follows.
Continue Reading Overview of SPC’s Provisions on Evidence in IP Civil Litigation