Introduction

Sources indicate that on November 2 2017 the Beijing High Court released the Provisions on the Adjustment of the Courts' Jurisdiction over Civil IP Cases in Beijing, which entered into force on the same date. As a result, the Provisions on the Jurisdiction over First-Instance Civil IP Disputes Heard by People's Courts at Various Levels in Beijing, which were issued by the Beijing High Court on June 3 2008, have been abolished.

The new provisions outline the jurisdiction of the Beijing High Court, the Beijing IP Court and the lower-level Beijing courts.

Beijing High Court

Under the new provisions, the Beijing High Court has jurisdiction over:

  • first-instance civil IP cases concerning amounts of Rmb200 million or more where all of the parties concerned are domiciled in Beijing;
  • first-instance civil IP cases concerning amounts of Rmb100 million or more where one party is domiciled outside Beijing or there is a foreign, Hong Kong, Macanese or Taiwanese element;
  • appeals filed against a first-instance civil IP judgment or verdict rendered by the Beijing IP Court;
  • retrials filed against a civil IP judgment, verdict or reconciliation agreement that was rendered by the Beijing IP Court and has come into effect, except where the party concerned has filed for a retrial before the Beijing IP Court; and
  • other first-instance civil IP cases of great significance in Beijing.

Beijing IP Court

The Beijing IP Court has jurisdiction over:

  • first-instance civil IP cases involving patents, new plant varieties, integrated circuit layout designs, technological secrets, computer software, monopolies or the recognition of well-known trademark status, where the amount concerned is worth less than Rmb200 million and all of the parties concerned are domiciled in Beijing;
  • first-instance civil IP cases involving patents, new plant varieties, integrated circuit layout designs, technological secrets, computer software, monopolies or the recognition of well-known trademark status, where the amount concerned is less than Rmb100 million and one party is domiciled outside Beijing or there is a foreign, Hong Kong, Macanese or Taiwanese element;
  • first-instance civil IP cases involving copyright, trademarks, technology contracts, unfair competition or franchise contracts, where the amount concerned is between Rmb100 million and Rmb200 million and all of the parties concerned are domiciled in Beijing;
  • first-instance civil IP cases involving copyright, trademarks, technology contracts, unfair competition or franchise contracts, where the amount concerned is between Rmb50 million and Rmb100 million and one party is domiciled outside Beijing or there is a foreign, Hong Kong, Macanese or Taiwanese element;
  • appeals filed against a first-instance civil IP judgment or verdict rendered by a lower-level court;
  • retrials filed against a civil IP judgment, verdict or reconciliation agreement that was rendered by a lower-level court and has come into effect, except where the party concerned has filed for a retrial before the lower-level courts; and
  • other first-instance civil IP cases of great significance in Beijing, which are not otherwise provided for by the above bullets.

Lower-level courts

The lower-level courts have jurisdiction over:

  • first-instance civil IP cases involving copyright, trademarks, technology contracts, unfair competition or franchise contracts, where the amount concerned is less than Rmb100 million and all of the parties concerned are domiciled in Beijing; and
  • first-instance civil IP cases involving copyright, trademarks, technology contracts, unfair competition or franchise contracts, where the amount concerned is less than Rmb50 million and one party is domiciled outside Beijing or there is a foreign, Hong Kong, Macanese or Taiwanese element.

The provisions are subject to the interpretation of the Case Filing Tribunal and the Third Civil Tribunal of the Beijing High Court.