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Failure to Heed IP in China Can Be Costly
Schneider Electric, a provider of power and control solutions headquartered in France, recently announced it had settled a three-year-old patent litigation with Chint, one of the largest manufacturers of low-voltage devices in China. The settlement amount of CNY 157.5 million (~ USD 23 million) paid by Schneider is believed to be the largest for a patent litigation settlement in China. The decisive victory for Chint puts a fresh spotlight on the fast-changing patent litigation landscape in China.
Chint originally paid CNY 500 (~ USD 70) in 1997 in filing fees for a utility model application at the State Intellectual Property Office (“SIPO”) of China. The utility model was granted in a little more than 15 months without undergoing any substantive examination. The Chinese patent office grants three types of patents:
- Invention patents or 20-year patents, which are similar to utility patents in the United States and cover new technical solutions that relate to a product, a process, or an improvement thereof;
- Design patents;
- Utility models or 10-year patents. The utility models are granted for “new technical solutions that relate to a product's shape or structure, or a combination of the two, and are also fit for practical use” and do not undergo a substantive examination and are granted rather quickly, typically within a year from the filing date. Evidently, utility models or 10-year patents are a cheaper and quicker way of obtaining patent protection.
Armed with its 10-year patent, Chint sued Schneider in 2006 and was awarded the landmark judgment in 2007. The Wenzhou Intermediate People's Court ordered Schneider to pay more than CNY 330 million (~ USD 45 million) and to stop the manufacture and sale of five of its products that allegedly infringe Chint's utility model.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.