P.R.C. Courts Show Improved Efficiency in Handling Foreign-related IP Lawsuits

Foreign companies often have concerns regarding whether the litigation process in an overseas venue will be efficiently handled by the relevant courts. In China, given the large increase in IP-related lawsuits in recent years, this is a reasonable concern. In 2009, P.R.C. courts had concluded 6,262 cases with a yearly increase of 31.89%. ¹With such an upsurge in litigation, the P.R.C. courts have faced a very significant challenge.

The recent upsurge in IP cases highlighted the need to create a more efficient process to handle IP-related cases. Through various reforms and improvements, the P.R.C courts have become more adept in handling their ever-growing caseloads. As disclosed by Hon. Justice Su Zelin, Vice President of the Supreme People's Court of P.R.China 'the fulfillment of the following specific contents of judicial reform have improved the judicial efficiency significantly: enlarging the application scope of the summary procedure to civil cases; widening the