First Specialised IP Tribunal in Northwest China Starts Operation in Xi'an

China's first specialised institution for intellectual property (IP) adjudication in its northwest region has come into operation on 24 February 2018 in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi province as well as the eastern starting point of the Silk Road trade route.

 

The Xi'an IP Tribunal, operating within Xi'an Intermediate People's Court, has jurisdiction over: i) first-instance IP-related civil or administrative cases involving patent, technical secret, computer software, new plant variety, integrated circuit (IC) layout design, recognition of well-known trademark, and monopoly dispute occurring within the jurisdiction of Shaanxi province; ii) first-instance civil, administrative or criminal IP-related cases occurring within the jurisdiction of Xi'an, other than those under the jurisdiction of the grassroots courts in Xi'an; and iii) appeal cases against first-instance adjudications of IP-related civil, administrative or criminal cases occurring within the jurisdiction of the grassroots courts in Xi'an.

 

The Xi'an IP Tribunal was established with the empowerment of the Supreme People's Court of China (SPC) by way of the issuance on 12 February 2018 of SPC's approval for the establishment of four specialised tribunals with cross-regional jurisdiction in certain IP cases, which, apart from Xi'an IP Tribunal, also comprise Tianjin IP Tribunal, Changsha IP Tribunal, and Zhengzhou IP Tribunal.