Patent Case Law and Intellectual Property Practice Blog

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Patents Topics: Support requirement First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 IP High Court, Reiwa 3 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10094 — PCSK9 (second litigation) (Judge Kanno) *It was successfully proved that the technical significance asserted by the patentee did not hold! → Support requirement not satisfied. (Excerpt from the judgment, translated) …The technical significance of the invent

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Patents Topics: Patent eligibility First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 Tokyo High Court, Heisei 15 (Gyo-Ke) No. 166 — …Topical agent for treating atopic dermatitis (Judge Tsukahara) *Falsity of the examples described in the specification was successfully established! → Not an “invention” eligible for a patent. (Excerpt from the judgment, translated) Although the specific

日本語版 Article information Article type: Administrative decision note Category: Trademarks Topics: Similarity of trademarks、Examination and appeal practice First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 [Trademarks / JPO decision] Opposition No. 2023-900278 Although “UNIQLO” is well known, it is dissimilar to “UNIPRO,” and there is no likelihood of confusion in the broader sense (suggesting some form of affiliation). “There is no risk of con

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Unfair competition law Topics: Misleading quality indication, Damages, Injunctions First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 [Unfair competition / Misleading representations of quality] IP High Court, Reiwa 5 (Ne) No. 10061 — “High-penetration nanoe” (Judge Nakadaira) *The party bringing the action bears the burden of pleading and proving that a representation is misleading as

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Patents Topics: Inventive step, Numerical limitations and parameters First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 IP High Court, Heisei 31 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10055 — Mechanical fastener (Judge Otaka) *The claimed numerical range overlapped with the preferred numerical range disclosed in the cited reference. → The claimed numerical range was obvious. (Excerpt from the judgment, translat

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Trademarks Topics: Similarity of trademarks First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 [Trademarks / Similarity] IP High Court, Reiwa 6 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10091 — “Connect One” (Judge Shimizu) The applied-for mark was held similar to the cited “コネクトワン” (Connect One) mark in standard characters. The applicant argued that its mark was pronounced “Connect Dot One.” However, where two or

日本語版 Article information Article type: Case note Category: Trademarks Topics: Examination and appeal practice、Contracts First published on this site: 2026-10-10 Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10 [Trademarks] IP High Court, Reiwa 6 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10061 — “CONART” (Judge Honda) *Take care with jointly owned trademarks! The trademark was jointly owned by the plaintiff (Raffles Global) and Japan Raffles. The JPO decision found that only Japan Raffles had entered into the l

日本語版 Article information Type: Administrative decision note Category: Trademarks Topics: Trademark similarity First published on this site: 2026-10-09 Case / source information: Appeal No. 2024-5257 Display and classification checked: 2026-10-09 [Trademarks / JPO decision] Appeal No. 2024-5257 *The applied-for mark, which added “The” to the cited mark and used a stylized design, was held dissimilar. (Excerpt from the decision, translated) A. The applied-for mark As shown in A

日本語版 Article information Type: Case note Category: Patents Topics: Claim construction、Doctrine of equivalents First published on this site: 2026-10-09 Case / source information: Osaka District Court, Reiwa 4 (Wa) No. 11025 Display and classification checked: 2026-10-09 Osaka District Court, Reiwa 4 (Wa) No. 11025 — Mite-trapping mat (Judge Matsuami) *A “porous air-permeable bag” must have a structure that retains its contents inside and prevents their dispersal. → Claim limit

日本語版 Article information Type: Case note Category: Trademarks Topics: Public order and morality First published on this site: 2026-10-09 Case / source information: IP High Court, Reiwa 5 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10128 Display and classification checked: 2026-10-09 [Trademarks / Article 4(1)(vii)] IP High Court, Reiwa 5 (Gyo-Ke) No. 10128 — “MARK GONZALES” (Judge Honda) From 2020, as termination of the license approached, the plaintiff filed numerous applications in Japan, South Korea, Ch