Section 4 of the Strategy deals with IP enforcement. According to a preliminary translation provided by Baker & McKenzie, paragraph 45 states that the government should “explore the possibility of establishing specialized IP courts to deal with IP-related civil, administrative and criminal cases".
IP holders in China often say that it is difficult to transfer a case from the administrative to the criminal enforcement systems and claim that a unified court would help reduce this problem.
Paragraph 45 also raises the possibility of a central IP appeal court in Beijing, stating that China’s government will "study the need for appropriately centralizing jurisdiction to deal with IP cases that require highly technical knowledge, for example patent cases; explore the possibility of establishing an appellate court specializing in IP appeals”.
Other aims set out in the strategy include: improving existing judicial interpretations, refining litigation procedures, including expert witnesses and technical investigations; improving policies relating to patent standards; and developing the mechanisms for compulsory licensing.
The commitments to improve IP enforcement come after the US government launched two WTO cases against China in April last year. The first case concerns what US officials described as deficiencies in China's legal regime for protecting and enforcing copyrights and trade marks, and the second dealt with China's alleged barriers to trade in books, music, videos and films.
In both cases Dispute Resolution Panels have now been set up to hear the disputes. Sources have told Managing IP that the Panels could issue preliminary rulings as early as this September.
The Strategy is the product of a National Working Group for IPR Protection set up in 2005 to coordinate IP policies. It is made up of 13 officials from 12 IP-related agencies and ministries, including the Ministry of Commerce, the State Intellectual Property Office, Customs, the Supreme People's Court and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce.
The Chinese government originally planned to release the National IP Strategy in 2007 but publication was delayed until after the first plenary session of the 11th National People's Congress on March 5 this year.
In November, Managing IP hosted a roundtable on enforcement in China in which the idea of having a specialized IP court in China is discussed.
