Evidentiary Standards for Trade Secret Misappropriation in Labor Arbitration
PRC labor arbitration requires employers to prove contractual breach, asset confidentiality, and exact damages without statutory burden shifting.
Intermediate Peoples Court IP Tribunal
Meaning
Specialized judicial division within a secondary level court in China tasked with hearing first instance intellectual property disputes. The intermediate peoples court ip tribunal handles cases involving patents, trade secrets, trademark infringements, and unfair competition claims that exceed the jurisdiction of lower courts. It operates under the guidance of the Supreme People’s Court to ensure consistent application of national IP standards.
Jurisdictional Scope
Cases are assigned to this level based on the technical complexity of the subject matter or the value of the claim. Disputes involving invention patents or high technology integrated circuits start here because the judges have specialized technical training. The tribunal also manages cases involving foreign parties where the investment scale is significant.
This centralization improves the quality of the technical fact finding process.
Procedural Mechanism
Fact finding often involves the use of technical investigators who advise the judges on scientific matters. These experts help the court understand the differences between competing designs or the chemical composition of a disputed product. The tribunal can issue preliminary injunctions to stop the sale of infringing goods during the trial.
This provides immediate relief to the rights holder before the final judgment is delivered.
Judgment Enforcement
Rulings made by this body are binding but can be appealed to the provincial High People’s Court or the Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People’s Court. The enforcement department of the court carries out the seizure of infringing assets and the collection of damages.