Japan Legal Update | Vol. 35

Intellectual Property

Cabinet Approves and Submits to the Diet the Bill to Partially Amend the Unfair Competition Prevention Act

On February 27, 2018, the Japanese Cabinet approved and submitted to the Diet the Bill for the Act of Partial Revision of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, Etc. ("UCPA Amendment Bill").

The UCPA Amendment Bill aims to create an environment that will further facilitate the use of data, given the ongoing development of information technology. While the bill's main amendments are to the Unfair Competition Prevention Act ("UCPA"), the bill also includes amendments to the Industrial Standardization Act, the Patent Act, and the Patent Attorney Act. One of the key aspects of the bill is the addition of new acts of unfair competition: the wrongful acquisition, use, and disclosure of technical or business information that is managed using an ID/password or with encryption.