The Supreme People's Court's interpretation of some issues concerning the application of law in the trial of trademark civil disputes.
Article 13 When determining the infringer's liability for compensation in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law, the people's court may calculate the amount of compensation according to the calculation method selected by the obligee.
Article 14 The benefits obtained from infringement as stipulated in the first paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law may be calculated according to the product of the sales volume of the infringing commodity and the unit profit of the commodity; If the unit profit of a commodity cannot be determined, it shall be calculated according to the unit profit of a registered trademark commodity.
Article 15 The losses suffered by infringement as stipulated in the first paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law can be calculated according to the sales volume of goods or the reduction of sales volume of infringing goods caused by the infringement of the right holder and the unit profit of goods with registered trademarks.
Article 16 If it is difficult to determine the benefits obtained by the infringer or the losses suffered by the infringed, the people's court may, at the request of the parties or ex officio, apply the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law to determine the amount of compensation.
When determining the amount of compensation, the people's court shall consider the nature, period and consequences of the infringement, the reputation of the trademark, the amount of trademark license fee, the type, time and scope of trademark license, and the reasonable expenses paid to stop the infringement.
If the parties reach an agreement on the amount of compensation in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph of this article, it shall be allowed.
Article 17 The reasonable expenses paid for stopping the infringement as stipulated in the first paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law include the reasonable expenses for the obligee or entrusted agent to investigate and collect the evidence of infringement. The people's court may, according to the claims of the parties and the specific circumstances of the case, calculate the lawyer's fees that meet the requirements of the relevant state departments within the scope of compensation.
To sum up, when determining the liability of the infringer, the amount of compensation can be calculated according to the calculation method selected by the obligee. Losses suffered due to infringement can be calculated according to the reduction of commodity sales caused by infringement or the product of the sales of infringing goods and the profit of registered trademark goods. If it is difficult to determine the benefits obtained by the infringer or the losses suffered by the infringed, the people's court may, at the request of the parties or ex officio, apply the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 56 of the Trademark Law to determine the amount of compensation.