QBPC Hold Seminar on Trending IP Issues
by Andrei Yang
On September 4, QBPC held an online seminar on the IP clauses in the Civil Code, trademark uses and damages in IP litigations. With the enactment of the Civil Code, acceleration of building an IP power country and the implementation of the Phase I China-US trade agreement, many new measures, new thinking and new methods have emerged. To learn more about these trends, QBPC invited former Beijing High Court judge, Zhong Lun Law Firm Shanghai Office Counsel Jiang Qiang and Zhong Lun Law Firm Partner Yang Heping discussed these trends and shared the latest cases with members.
QBPC Legal Committee Vice Chair Amanda Dong hosted the seminar and some 70 member representatives joined the online discussion. QBPC Legal Committee Chair Michael Yu and Zhong Lun Law Firm Senior Partner Huang Jingwen welcomed everyone. During the subsequent discussions, Jiang Qiang first explained the IP clauses in the Civil Code. About the punitive damages with which QBPC members most concerned, Jiang Qiang emphasized the distinction and connection of concepts such as “intentional”, “bad faith” and “serious circumstance” among the Civil Code, the Trademark Law, the Patent Law and the Anti-Unfair Competition Law. Yang Heping explained the definition of “trademark use” and strategies in trademark infringement cases. Bad faith trademark registration had been a headache for right holders and the main strategies for dealing with it were through “deregistration after three years of non-use” or “prior use”. With real cases, Yang analyzed the two strategies and gave concrete advices on the use of trademark, managing and storing evidence. In the final section, Jiang Qiang discussed the best way to design the formula and how to collect the relevant evidence in calculating damages. Low compensation had been another problem for IP protection. The highest leadership had on many occasions stated that the law must address the issue of fairly compensating the right holders. More credible evidence and more reasonable formula could help convince the court of the necessity of high damages.