Published on The National Law Review (http://www.natlawreview.com)
China’s Supreme People’s Court Clarifies IC
Layout Design Rights Standing Requirements
Article By:
Aaron Wininger
In case no. （2021）最高法知民终1313号, the Intellectual Property Tribunal of the Supreme People’s
Court of China ruled that a plaintiff lacked standing when its integrated circuit layout design right was
invalidated despite appealing the invalidation decision to the Beijing Intellectual Property Court.
In the first instance, Tianwei Company claimed that it was the right holder of the exclusive right of integrated
circuit layout design with the registration number BS.095006249. After investigation, it was found that
Xintiansheng Company sold the products purchased from Zhongwei Aixin Company. The product model is
AiP1637, and the chip named “2-wire serial port common anode 8-segment 6-digit LED drive control/8*2digit keyboard scanning special circuit” copied the layout design of Tianwei Company, so Tianwei sued
requesting Xintiansheng Company and Zhongwei Aixin Company stop infringement and compensate for
losses.
During the litigation process of the first instance of this case, on February 18, 2021, the China National
Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) invalidated the integrated circuit layout design registration
number BS.095006249.
The court of first instance determined that the exclusive right to protect the layout design of integrated
circuits with the registration number BS.095006249 requested by Tianwei Company in this case has been
revoked by the CNIPA, and Tianwei Company therefore lost standing and rejected the lawsuit. Tianwei
Company filed an appeal with the Supreme People’s Court, arguing that although the IC layout design
involved was revoked by the CNIPA, Tianwei Company has filed an administrative lawsuit appealing the
invalidation. Further, the Supreme People’s Court on Trial of Patent Infringement Disputes The
Interpretation of Several Issues in the Application of Law (2) stipulates that if the claims claimed by the right
holder in the patent infringement litigation are invalidated, the people’s court hearing the patent infringement
dispute case may rule to reject the right holder’s lawsuit based on the invalid claim, but the regulations are
limited to the field of patent disputes. There are no laws, regulations and judicial interpretations for similar
provisions in the exclusive right of integrated circuit layout design disputes, so the litigation should not be
suspended.
Although Tianwei Company filed a lawsuit against the administrative decision of the CNIPA within the time
limit specified by the law, the basis of its rights is still uncertain. If the invalidation decision is not revoked
by a judgment in Tianwei’s favor, the integrated circuit layout design involved will be regarded as nonexistent from the beginning, thus losing the basis of the right to sue.
Secondly, Tianwei Company sued Xintiansheng Company and Zhongwei Aixin Company for infringing on
its exclusive right of integrated circuit layout design but under the situation of uncertain rights, if the
infringement litigation is suspended, the case may remain unresolved for a long time.
Finally, the disputes over infringement upon the exclusive rights of IC Layout Design also fall within the
scope of disputes over intellectual property rights, and under the circumstance that the exclusive rights of IC
Layout Design involved in this case are revoked, the people’s court may rule to dismiss the lawsuit of
Tianwei Company by reference to the manner of handling when the patent right is declared invalid in the
patent infringement action.
If the administrative decision on revocation of the IC Layout Design in question is subsequently revoked by
an effective administrative judgment, and the status of the right in the IC Layout Design Patent in question is
clear and stable, Tianwei Company may file a separate lawsuit, which will not seriously impair the lawful
rights of Tianwei Company.
© 2022 Schwegman, Lundberg & Woessner, P.A. All Rights Reserved.
National Law Review, Volume XI, Number 328
Source URL: https://www.natlawreview.com/article/china-s-supreme-people-s-court-clarifies-ic-layoutdesign-rights-standing