SPC OKs Quanzhou IP court

An intellectual property (IP) court will be established in the Quanzhou Intermediate People's Court (IPC) in East China's Fujian province, according to an approval document released by the Supreme People's Court (SPC).

The document said first instance IP related civil and administrative cases within Quanzhou's jurisdiction that involve patents, new plant varieties, layout designs of integrated circuit, technical secrets, ownership of computer software and recognition of well-known trademarks, as well as first instance IP related civil, administrative and criminal cases beyond the jurisdiction of Quanzhou's grassroots courts, will all be within the jurisdiction of Quanzhou IPC.

The document was issued as a reply to the motion of establishing an IP court in Quanzhou, submitted by the National People's Congress (NPC) deputies from Quanzhou during the fifth session of the 13th NPC held in March.

Quanzhou will become the third city in Fujian province to host an IP court, said an official from the Quanzhou IPC.

Over the years, Quanzhou has pioneered multiple innovative measures in its efforts to build a national independent innovation demonstration zone, which has resulted in significant progress in its innovation capacity and need, as well as judicial protection over intellectual property rights. From 2017 to 2021, courts in Quanzhou concluded 16,000 IP related cases, accounting for 27 percent of the total number of concluded cases in the province.

The establishment of the Quanzhou IP court will better meet the rising need and lower the cost of IPR protection, expand Quanzhou's influence on IP judicial protection as a key city along the Maritime Silk Road, and will be conducive to strengthening protection of private enterprises' innovation achievements.