The court’s jurisdiction over trademark dispute cases and the application of law

The gist of the trial

Since the plaintiff in this case is a company in Taiwan, the court has jurisdiction over the litigation and the application of law. A trial was held.

The court held that: the plaintiff ** Company is an enterprise in Taiwan, China. Therefore, this case is based on the provisions of Articles 1 and 5 of the "Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Litigation Jurisdiction of Foreign-Related Civil and Commercial Cases". Trial of commercial cases.

According to Article 50 of the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Application of Laws in Foreign-Related Civil Relations", liability for infringement of intellectual property rights shall be governed by the law of the place where protection is requested. The parties may also file a lawsuit after the infringement occurs. The choice of court shall be governed by the law of the forum. The parties in this case did not choose the applicable law, so this case should be governed by the law of the place where the exclusive right to use the trademark involved in the case is requested to be protected, that is, the law of mainland China, that is, the law of mainland my country.

Since the alleged infringement involved in the case occurred before the revision of the current Trademark Law and continued after the implementation of the Trademark Law, according to the "Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Jurisdiction of Trademark Cases and the Application of Laws after the Implementation of the Trademark Law Revision Decision" 》Article 9, this case should be governed by the revised Trademark Law, that is, the current Trademark Law.

Expert Comment

Lawyers Huang Xuefen and Lin Jiaoyun from Guangdong Changhao Law Firm believe that the legal provisions are very clear regarding the jurisdiction and legal application of trademark cases.

As for the issue of court jurisdiction, Article 3 of the "Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Jurisdiction of Trademark Cases and the Application of Laws after the Implementation of the Trademark Law Amendment Decision" shall handle first-instance trademark civil cases by the people's courts above the intermediate level and the Supreme People's Court. The grassroots people's courts designated by the people's courts have jurisdiction.

Civil and administrative cases involving the protection of well-known trademarks shall be under the jurisdiction of the Intermediate People's Court of the city where the people's government of the province or autonomous region is located, the city under separate state planning, the district of the municipality directly under the Central Government, and other intermediate people's courts designated by the Supreme People's Court. Therefore, first-instance trademark cases are generally only qualified to be heard by the intermediate people's courts, and grassroots courts can only hear the cases after being designated by the Supreme People's Court.

As for issues related to the application of law, the legal provisions are relatively detailed. Article 5 of the "Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Issues concerning the Jurisdiction of Trademark Cases and the Application of Law after the Implementation of the Decision to Amend the Trademark Law" provides for the implementation of the decision to amend the Trademark Law. For a trademark registration and renewal application submitted before, the Trademark Office will decide not to accept or renew the trademark application after the decision is implemented. If the party files an administrative lawsuit, the People's Court will apply the revised Trademark Law when reviewing.

For a trademark objection application filed before the decision to amend the Trademark Law is implemented, and the Trademark Office decides not to accept the objection after the decision is implemented, and the party files an administrative lawsuit, the People's Court shall apply the application before the amendment when reviewing the decision. trademark law.

Article 6: If a party applies for review of a trademark that has not yet been approved for registration before the decision to amend the Trademark Law is implemented, and the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board makes a review decision or ruling after the decision is implemented, and the party files an administrative lawsuit, the People's Court shall review the application. The revised Trademark Law shall apply.

For trademark review applications accepted before the implementation of the decision to amend the Trademark Law, the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board will make a decision to approve the registration after the decision is implemented. If the party files an administrative lawsuit, the People's Court will not accept it; the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board will not accept the application after the decision is implemented. If a decision is made not to approve registration after the implementation, and the parties file an administrative lawsuit, the People's Court will apply the trademark law before the amendment when reviewing the relevant litigation rights and subject qualifications.

Article 7: For a trademark that has been approved for registration before the decision to amend the Trademark Law is implemented, and the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board accepts the application before the decision is implemented, and makes a review decision or ruling after the decision is implemented, and the party files an administrative lawsuit, the people's The court shall apply the revised Trademark Law when reviewing relevant procedural issues, and shall apply the pre-amended Trademark Law when reviewing substantive issues.

Related reading: Types of trademark disputes

There are three main types of trademark disputes under China’s Trademark Law: one is trademark objection, the other is trademark dispute, and the third is trademark infringement.

Trademark Objection

Trademark objection is clearly stipulated in the "Trademark Law" and its implementation rules. It is a legal process that publicly solicits public opinions on a preliminary trademark review. Its purpose is to conduct it fairly and openly. Confirm trademark rights and improve the quality of trademark registration review.

The scope of trademark objections is very wide, including that the initially approved trademark is identical or similar to the previously applied trademark, or that the initially approved trademark violates the prohibited provisions of the Trademark Law or the trademark is not distinctive. nature, and also includes applicants not having the qualifications to apply.

Anyone can file a trademark objection, that is, it can be a trademark registrant or a non-trademark registrant, it can be an enterprise, an institution, or an individual, or it can be a legal person, It can also be an unincorporated person. The establishment of trademark opposition procedures aims to strengthen public supervision of trademark review work, reduce review errors, strengthen trademark awareness, give previously registered trademark owners and other interested parties an opportunity to protect their rights and interests, and eliminate rights the aftermath of conflict. The opponent can be the registered trademark owner, the previous applicant for trademark registration and other interested parties, or any other citizen or legal person.

Trademark disputes

Trademark disputes refer to disputes over registered trademarks, that is, between two registered trademark owners because the two trademarks are identical on the same or similar goods/services. Disputes over trademark rights arising from trademark or similarity, or disputes over trademark rights arising from the right holder of a well-known trademark because a registered trademark is identical or similar to a well-known trademark.

Trademark infringement

Trademark infringement refers to the use of an identical or similar trademark to the registered trademark on the same or similar goods without the permission of the trademark owner, or other interference, Other behaviors that hinder the trademark owner from using its registered trademark and damage the legitimate rights and interests of the trademark owner. If the perpetrator sells goods that he knows or should have known are counterfeit registered trademarks, the natural person or legal person whose exclusive right to use the trademark has been infringed has the civil right to require the infringer to stop the infringement, eliminate the impact, and compensate for losses.