On December 21, Ningbo Daily published the full text of the "Recommendations of the CPC Ningbo Municipal Committee on Formulating the Fourteenth Five-Year Plan for Ningbo's National Economic and Social Development and the 2035 Long-Term Goals" (hereinafter referred to as the "Proposals").
It is understood that the "Proposal" mentioned in the section "Promoting the reform of system integration and building a more dynamic market economy system and mechanism", "playing the leading role of judicial protection of intellectual property law enforcement, promoting the establishment of Ningbo Intellectual Property Courts, and accelerating the construction of the great protection pattern of intellectual property rights."
The "Proposal" pointed out that the market economy’s fundamental system should be consolidated, implement a unified market access negative list system, clean up and correct discriminatory regulations and differential practices in market access. In accordance with the principle of "Competitive Neutrality and Equal Protection", implement a fair competition review system to enhance the comprehensive market supervision capabilities; Strengthen the protection of property rights, and equally protect the property rights of all types of ownership enterprises, the legitimate rights and interests of entrepreneurs and citizens in accordance with the law; deepen the construction of the China (Ningbo) Intellectual Property Protection Center, accelerate the construction of the Ningbo branch of the National Overseas Intellectual Property Dispute Response and Guidance Center, and improve and refine the rules for the creation, use, protection, and transaction of intellectual property rights.
The Intellectual Property Court is a judicial institution set up in the "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues of Comprehensively Deepening Reform" to strengthen the use and protection of intellectual property rights and improve the incentive mechanism for technological innovation. On August 31, 2014, the 10th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress voted and approved the decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on the establishment of Intellectual Property Courts in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
As a major province of entrepreneurship, innovation and intellectual property rights, Zhejiang is also exploring the judicial protection of intellectual property rights. Approved by the Supreme People’s Court, Hangzhou and Ningbo Intellectual Property Courts were officially established in Hangzhou Intermediate Court and Ningbo Intermediate Court respectively on September 8, 2017, implemented a cross-administrative jurisdiction model and a "Civil, Administrative and Criminal Intellectual Property Rights" three-in-one trial system.
On June 29, 2020, Zhejiang Province issued the "Decision of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China on Building a High-Quality and Powerful Talent Team and Building a High-Level Innovative Province". Article 24 of it proposes to strengthen legal protections focusing on intellectual property protection and striving to establish Hangzhou and Ningbo Intellectual Property Courts to implement the punitive damages system effectively.
The "Lianyi News" sponsored by the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference reported that Xu Jianmin, a member of the Ningbo Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a senior partner of Zhejiang Haitai Law Firm, believes that the establishment of an Intellectual Property Court in Ningbo is important for attracting enterprises and scientific research teams with intellectual property rights to settle in Ningbo. "Once an Intellectual Property Court is established in a city, the Court named after the city will in turn become a business card for the city's high level of intellectual property protection, technological innovation, and a good business environment for intellectual property."
