IP court opens to the public to promote IPR protection

The Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People's Court opened Intellectual Property Rights Publicity Week on April 23, aiming to promote the court and intellectual property rights protection to the public.

During the first open day, dozens of reporters and visitors from different walks of life visited the litigation center of the court, tried the smart systems including electronic file submission and online searching of typical cases through scanning their ID card at the terminal.

Xie Shuo, a student of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said she was impressed by the all-round informatization of the court, including its smart devices, electronic signature system and online evidence submission process.

"We could read the state of the trial and the procedures by only scanning the ID card on the terminal," she explained.

The visitors also attended an open trial about a dispute over a patent invalidation application between appellants Baidu and Sogou, two search engine giants in China, and respondent the Patent Reexamination Board of CNIPA.

According to the court, appeals of administrative cases related to patent invalidation used to be tried at higher courts in Beijing. Now, such cases are all handled at the Intellectual Property Court, which will promote the unification of judgment rules.

Besides the judge, a court clerk and judge assistant, the trial was also attended by a technical investigator who was responsible for helping judges better understand the professional technology phrases and words involved in the case.

Meanwhile, although both Baidu and Sogou were appellants, they sat on opposite sides during the trial.

According to Liu Xiaojun, judge of the trial, the seat arrangement made it easier to see the conflicts betweenthe three parties.

Liu added that the open trial provided a chance for the public to participate in IP-related trials and visit the Intellectual Property Court to learn about its functions and the work of its judicial staff, which benefited the public and supported the court's work.

Qin Jia, a student of the Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies of Peking University, said the court is a fruit of China's concern about intellectual property protection.

He explained that his major was about data sciences and that he would like to join the IT industry after graduation. He is interested in intellectual property cases and the open trial had helped him gain more knowledge about IP trials.

Zhou Xiang, deputy chief judge of the Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People's Court, extended his welcome to more public visitors and looked forward to receiving suggestions to improve the court from all aspects.

"The open week is a window to show the court' efforts in protecting intellectual property rights and is a test of the Intellectual Property Court since its establishment on Jan 1, 2019," he said. "The event will help the court be better all around."

Zhou Xiang, deputy chief judge of the Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People's Court delivers a speech at the first open day of the Intellectual Property Rights Publicity Week on April 23. He outlined the foundation, principles and goals of the court and pointed out that open week was intended to promote the court to more people in terms of the significance of intellectual property rights protection and the informatization of the court. [Photo/chinadailycom.cn]