MARCH 2008
Passing judgment on Japan's IP court
Japan's IP High Court celebrates its third anniversary in April. Yoshikazu Iwase looks at how its decisions so far have affected IP owners
| One-minute read |
| A number of countries in Asia have turned to specialist IP courts as a way to reduce backlogs and increase expertise among the judiciary. Thailand led the way with its Central IP and IT Court in 1997. In 2005 Japan set up its own IP High Court and Malaysia introduced a specialist court last year. Taiwan's IP court will open its doors in July and some IP holders in China believe that an IP court would improve enforcement there. But IP courts are not without critics. Some argue that IP should not be separated from other parts of the law and that specialist courts are often simply a cosmetic solution to a far deeper problem that requires more fundamental reform of the judicial system. In this article, Yashikazu Iwase looks at how the IP High Court in Japan has developed since 2005 and, in particular, how it has dealt with appeals from decisions of the Japan Patent Office. |
Since its establishment in April 2005, Japan's Intellectual Property High Court has played an important role in IP litigation in the country which, as a result, has become quicker and more predictable. The Court hears appeals from district courts based on claims concerning, among others, patent infringement as well as appeals against JPO trial decisions regarding the registrability or validity of patents, trade marks and designs.
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