China to step up judicial protection of IPR

BEIJING -- China will step up judicial protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) to support innovation-driven development, according to a work report of the Supreme People's Court (SPC) on Monday.

More efforts will be made to enhance the IPR protection of core technologies in key areas and emerging industries, said the report submitted to the ongoing national legislative session for deliberation.

Chinese courts at all levels concluded 466,000 cases related to IPR of first instance in 2020, up 11.7 percent year on year. The compensation for IPR-related offenses last year increased 79.3 percent.

In 2020, the SPC issued 10 judicial interpretations and normative documents related to IPR to facilitate right holders and increase the compensation for infringements, said the report.

China also improved the punitive damages system for IPR infringements and strengthened the role of SPC's tribunal for IPR-related cases.

China prosecuted 12,000 people for crimes of IPR infringements in 2020, marking a 10.4 percent year-on-year increase, according to a work report of the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) on Monday.

The SPP has established a special organ that integrates criminal, civil and administrative procuratorial functions, creating a professional team to strengthen comprehensive judicial protection of IPR.

China gives equal protection to the IPR of enterprises from both home and abroad, according to the SPP report.