Between 2013 and 2017, 683,000 intellectual property cases were adjudicated and closed in first-instance Chinese courts. Chinese courts explored the application of punitive damages and the establishment of a litigation credit system to effectively mitigate problems in the enforcement of intellectual property rights such as ineffective infringement disincentives, high enforcement costs and difficulty in evidence collection.

The establishment of the SPC IP Tribunal will help to:

● unify and standardize adjudication criteria;

● integrate the two major litigation procedures (the determination of the existence of intellectual property rights and the determination of infringement of those rights) and adjudication criteria;

● resolve the problem of inconsistent adjudication standards (which stifles scientific and technical innovation);

● improve the quality and efficiency of the adjudication of intellectual property disputes;

● strengthen the judicial protection of intellectual property rights; and

● enhance judicial credibility.

(Source: The Legal Daily)