China issues guideline to strengthen juridical protection for IP rights

BEIJING -- China will award heavier compensations for victims of severe acts of infringing intellectual property (IP) rights and consider recording dishonest litigations, such as malicious prosecutions, in the national credit information system, to curb IP-related crimes, according to a guideline released by the Supreme People's Court (SPC).

The 26-item guideline, made public Tuesday, has turned the focus to challenges and difficulties of IP cases, sparing no efforts to lower the cost and duration of lawsuits, while increasing compensation and relieving the burden of adducing evidence.

In response to social concerns, pressing issues and the need to strengthen juridical protections, the guideline also focuses on clarifying the applicable standards of IP-related laws in a timely manner, said Jiang Bixin, vice president of the SPC, at a press conference in Beijing also on April 21.

It will emphasize equal protection for the IP-related legal rights of economic entities of different ownership structures or litigants with different nationalities, and stress the importance of targeted protection for IP cases of different types and areas, Jiang said.

He added that the SPC will make efforts to fully implement the guideline in the next stage to improve the juridical protection for intellectual property rights.