By Sun Mingfei and Gui Hongxia King&Wood Mallesons’ Dispute Resolution Group

Often the first battle that parties face in an intellectual property infringement dispute is determining which court has jurisdiction to hear the dispute. For many reasons, the plaintiff will usually wish to initiate proceedings at the court where the plaintiff has its domicile or at a court relatively experienced in intellectual property disputes. A plaintiff will generally try to avoid initiating proceedings at the court where the defendant has its domicile. When determining jurisdiction, the parties and the court should seek to determine the places with the most significant connection to the dispute. Apart from where the defendant has its domicile, the other place that will have a connection with the dispute will be the place of infringement. In an online environment, there have been many cases that have considered whether the place of receipt in an online transaction can be considered as the place of infringement. However, no uniform understanding has yet been reached in judicial practice. As a result, there have been a large number of jurisdictional challenges.
Continue Reading Do courts at the place of receipt in an online transaction have jurisdiction over patent infringement cases?