Asia-Pacific

In the US-China Phase One trade deal signed on January 15 2020, notable agreements on patents mostly relate to pharmaceutical sectors – Articles 1.10, 1.11 and 1.12. It is possible that these articles may also have implications for other sectors, which remains to be seen in the subsequent implementation. In addition, the provisions on judicial enforcement and procedures should benefit all patent owners. More technical issues such as indirect infringement or changes to the judicial review of invalidation decisions are not addressed. This update provides a brief overview of these key changes.

The TRIPS Agreement, to which the Philippines is a signatory, enables governments of member countries with no capacity to manufacture medicines to import/export cheaper pharmaceutical products via a compulsory licence. These are medicines for which they would otherwise have paid a higher price because of existing patents.

On December 25 2019, the Supreme Court promulgated amendments of Several Provisions on Civil Evidence Rules (amendments). The amendments, which will come into effect on May 1 2020, have attracted lots of attention from IP practitioners. The rules are expected to improve the accuracy and standardisation of evidence production procedures and balance the burden of proof between litigants. Below are some highlights of the amendments.

Recently, the Korean medical devices market has been growing notably. According to a 2019 Annual Report by the Korea Medical Devices Industry Association, the Korean domestic market has grown at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 8% during the last five years (2014 to 2018). The global medical devices market also exhibits a rising trend; Fortune Business Insight has forecasted a CAGR of 5.3% from 2018 to 2025. In view of a growing geriatric population, the prevalence of lifestyle-related diseases, and rising demand for new innovative devices and personalised healthcare services, the future medical devices market is expected to show steady growth.

The new provision for punitive damages for wilful infringement is now effective. The newly introduced punitive damages provision should contribute to stronger protection of patents and increase general value of patents in Korea. The new provision set forth below is now effective in Korea to deter unjust acts of patent infringement.

Editha R Hechanova, Brenda P Rivera and Chrissie Ann L Barredo of Hechanova & Co, analyse the law around patents and trademarks including the procedure for acquiring a patent, establishing patent infringement and the enforcement of trademark rights