Interpretation by the Supreme People's Court of the Issues Relating to Jurisdiction over and Scope of Application of Law to the Hearing of Trademark Cases (Adopted at the 1203rd Meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People's Court
on 25 December 2001 and entering into force on 21 January 2002)
The Decision by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on the Amendment of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law) was adopted at the 24th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress, and went into force on 1 December 2001.
This Interpretation of the Issues Relating to the Jurisdiction over and Scope of Application of Law to the Hearing of Trademark Cases is hereby made in accordance with the provisions of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Trademark Law), the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China and the Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Administrative Procedure Law) with a view to duly hearing and judging trademark cases:
Article 1 The People's Court accepts following trademark cases:
1. Cases of dissatisfaction with reexamination decisions or adjudications made by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the Administrative Department for Industry and Commerce under the State Council (TRAB);
2. Cases of dissatisfaction with specific administrative actions taken by the Administrative Department for Industry and Commerce in respect of trademarks;
3. Cases of disputes over attribution of exclusive right to use trademarks;
4. Cases of disputes arising from infringement of the exclusive right to use trademarks;
5. Cases of contractual disputes over assignment of the exclusive right to use trademarks;
6. Cases of contractual disputes over trademark licenses;
7. Cases of application for pre-trial cessation of infringement of the exclusive right to use trademarks;
8. Cases of application for pre-trial property preservation;
9. Cases of application for pre-trial evidence preservation;
10. Other trademark cases.
Article 2 The first-instance hearing of cases in Article 1 (1) of this Interpretation is under the jurisdiction of the intermediate people's court designated by the Beijing Municipal Higher People's Court within its region of jurisdiction in accordance with the authorization by the Supreme People's Court.
The jurisdiction over the first-instance hearing of cases in Article 1 (2) of this Interpretation is determined according to the relevant provisions of the Administrative Procedure Law.
The first-instance trademark cases are under the jurisdiction of an Intermediate People's Court or a court above.
With the approval of the Supreme People's Court, the higher people's courts may designate, according to the practical situation in the region under their respective jurisdiction, one or two grass-root People's Court of relatively large cities to hear civil cases of trademark disputes for first instance.
Article 3 Where a trademark registrant or an interested party files with the administrative department for industry and commerce a request for handling an infringement of the exclusive right to use the trademark and institutes proceedings in the People's Court against an infringement of the exclusive right to use trademark and for compensation for damages, the People's Court shall accept the case.
Article 4 Where an interested party institutes proceedings in the People's Court out of dissatisfaction with a reexamination decision or adjudication made by TRAB after the entry into force of the Decision of the Amendment of the Trademark Law in respect of a case accepted thereby before the entry into force of the Decision of the Amendment of the Trademark Law, the People's Court shall accept the case.
Article 5 Except otherwise provided for in this Interpretation, the relevant provisions of the newly revised Trademark Law apply in the examination of cases of administrative proceedings instituted by interested parties out of dissatisfaction with reexamination decisions or adjudications made by TRAB after the entry into force of the Decision of the Amendment of the Trademark Law in respect of the circumstances under Articles 4, 5, 8, 9, paragraph one, 10, paragraph one (2), (3), and (4), 10, paragraph two, 11,12, 13, 15, 16, 24, 25 and 31 of the revised Trademark Law, which arose before the entry into force of the Decision of the Amendment of the Trademark Law; cases falling into other circumstances shall be examined according to the relevant provisions of the former Trademark Law.
Article 6 Where an interested party institutes proceedings in the People's Court out of dissatisfaction with the adjudication by TRAB in respect of a case of dispute over a trademark which had been registered for a year or for a longer period of time before the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law, the case is handled by applying the provision of Article 27, paragraph two, of the former Trademark Law set forth in respect of the time limit for filing the application; where a trademark had
not been registered for a year or a longer period of time before the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law, the case is handled by applying the provisions of Article 41, paragraphs two and three, of the revised Trademark Law set forth in respect of the time limit for filing the application.
Article 7 Where in respect of an infringement of the exclusive right to use trademark taking place before the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law, a trademark registrant or an interested party files an application with the People's Court for ordering cessation of the infringing act or for taking the measure of evidence preservation before instituting proceedings after the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law, the provisions of Articles 57 and 58 of the revised Trademark Law shall apply.
Article 8 Where the People's Court had not rendered any effective judgment at the time of the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the trademark Law in respect of the cases of proceedings instituted against infringements of the exclusive right to use trademarks taking place before the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law, the cases shall be handled with reference to the provision of Article 56 of the revised Trademark Law.
Article 9 Except otherwise provided for in this Interpretation, the provisions of the former Trademark Law apply to civil cases of trademark disputes involving civil acts taking place before the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law and accepted by the People's Court; where civil cases arising after the entering into force of the Decision are involved, the provisions of the revised Trademark Law shall apply; the provisions of the former and revised Trademark Laws apply respectively to civil acts which took place before and continued after the entry into force of the Decision on the Amendment of the Trademark Law.
Article 10 Where cases of disputes arising from infringements of the exclusive right to use trademarks accepted by the People's Court are handled by the administrative department for industry and commerce, the People's Court shall conduct the hearing, all the same, as to the facts involved in the civil disputes between interested parties.
(Source: NTD Patent & Trademark Agency Ltd.)
中华人民共和国最高人民法院公告
《最高人民法院关于审理商标案件有关管辖和法律适用范围问题的解释》已于２００１年１２月２５日由最高人民法院审判委员会第１２０３次会议通过。现予公 布，自２００２年１月２１日起施行。 二００二年一月九日 最高人民 法院关于审理商标案件有关管辖和法律适用范围问题的解释 （２００１年１２月２５日最高人民法院审判委员会 第 １２０３次会议通过 法释〔２００２〕１号） 《全国人民代表大会常务委员会关于修改〈中华人民共和国商标法〉的决定》（以下简称商标 法修改决定）已由第九届全国人民代表大会常务委员会第二十四次会议通过，自２００１年１２月１日起施行。为了正确审理商标案件，根据《中华人民共和国商标 法》（以下简称商标法）、《中华人民共和国民事诉讼法》和《中华人民共和国行政诉讼法》（以下简称行政诉讼法）的规定，现就人民法院审理商标案件有关管辖 和法律适用范围等问题，作如下解释：
第一条 人民法院受理以下商标案件： １、不服国务院工商行政管理部门商标评审委员会（以下简称商标评审委员会）作出的复审决定或者裁定的案件； ２、不服工商行政管理部门作出的有关商标的具体行政行为的案件； ３、商标专用权权属纠纷案件； ４、侵犯商标专用权纠纷案件； ５、商标专用权转让合同纠纷案件； ６、商标许可使用合同纠纷案件； ７、申请诉前停止侵犯商标专用权案件； ８、申请 诉前财产保全案件； ９、申请诉前证据保全案件； １０、其他商标案件。
第二条 本解释第一条所列第１项第一审案件，由北京市高级人民法院根据最高人民法院的授权 确定其辖区内有关中级人民法院管辖。 本解释第一条所列第２项第一审案件，根据行政诉讼法的有关规定确定管辖。 商标民事纠纷第一审 案件，由中级以上人民法院管辖。 各高级人民法院根据本辖区的实际情况，经最高人民法院批准，可以在较大城市确定１－２个基层人民法院受理第一 审商标民事纠纷案件。
第三条 商标注册人或者利害关系人向工商行政管理部门就侵犯商标专用权行为请求处理，又向人民法院提起侵犯商标专用权诉讼请求损害赔偿的，人民法院应当受理。
第四条 商标评审委员会在商标法修改决定施行前受理的案 件，于该决定施行后作出复审决定或裁定，当事人对复审决定或裁定不服向人民法院起诉的，人民法院应当受理。
第五条 除本解释另行规定外，对商标法修改决定施行前发生，属于修改后商标法第四条、第五 条、第八条、第九条第一款、第十条第一款第（二）、（三）、（四）项、第十条第二款、第十一条、第十二条、第十三条、第十五条、第十六条、第二十四条、第 二十五条、第三十一条所列举的情形，商标评审委员会于商标法修改决定施行后作出复审决定或者裁定，当事人不服向人民法院起诉的行政案件，适用修改后商标法 的相应规定进行审查；属于其他情形的，适用修改前商标法的相应规定进行审查。
第六条 当事人就商标法修改决定施行时已满一年的注册商标发生争议，不服商标评审委员会作出 的裁定向人民法院起诉的，适用修改前商标法第二十七条第二款规定的提出申请的期限处理；商标法修改决定施行时商标注册不满一年的，适用修改后商标法第四十 一条第二款、第三款规定的提出申请的期限处理。
第七条 对商标法修改决定施行前发生的侵犯商标专用权行为，商标注册人或者利害关系人于该决定施行后在起诉前向人民法院提出申请采取责令停止侵权行为或者保全证据 措施的，适用修改后商标法第五十七条、第五十八条的规定。
第八条 对商标法修改决定施行前发生的侵犯商标专用权行为起诉的案件，人民法院于该决定施行时尚未作出生效判决的，参照修改后商 标法第五十六条的规定处理。
第九条 除本解释另行规定外，商标法修改决定施行后人民法院受理的商标民事纠纷案件，涉及该决定施行前发生的民事行为的，适用修改前商标法的规定；涉及该决定施行 后发生的民事行为的，适用修改后商标法的规定；涉及该决定施行前发生，持续到该决定施行后的民事行为的，分别适用修改前、后商标法的规定。
第十条 人民法院受理的侵犯商标专用权纠纷案件，已经过 工商行政管理部门处理的，人民法院仍应当就当事人民事争议的事实进行审查。