Patent Case Law and Intellectual Property Practice Blog

Read the Japanese version / 日本語版を読む [Article / US patents] Extraterritorial application of patent law (龍野文, Patent, November 2023) 1. Direct infringement (35 U.S.C. § 271(a)) (1) System inventions (NTP) Even if some components (servers, etc.) are outside the United States, use is considered domestic if the system is “controlled and beneficially used” in the United States, with its benefits enjoyed there. (2) Method inventions (NTP) There is no infringement unless all steps ar

Read the Japanese version / 日本語版を読む [Article / Korean patents] Treatment of extraterritorial matters in Korea (ジョン ウォンギ, Patent, November 2023) Korean courts tend to interpret territoriality flexibly, assessing infringement primarily by whether acts of working the patent occur in Korea, regardless of the location of servers or assembly. 1. Servers located abroad (1) Seoul Central District Court, 2007, 2006 Gahap 73442 A Korean patent (search method), with the server in the Un

Read the Japanese version / 日本語版を読む [Article / Patents] Cross-border patent infringement in the IoT era (前田健, Patent, 2025 Supplement No. 31) While retaining traditional territoriality (the principle that a patent’s effect is confined to the territory of that country), the article proposes “flexible application” to ensure the effectiveness of patent rights. In determining whether an act of working was performed in Japan, it emphasizes not only the actor’s location but also th

Read the Japanese version / 日本語版を読む [Article / European patents] Pitfalls of contributory infringement (Vincenzo Jandoli, AIPPI Vol. 71, No. 3) Where components sold in its own country by a company outside Europe (e.g., China) are later incorporated into finished products that infringe a patent in Europe (e.g., Italy), this may constitute "contributory infringement." For example, Italian law, based on the criminal-law concept of complicity, provides for joint and several liab

Read the Japanese version / 日本語版を読む Tokyo District Court, Case No. 2023 (Wa) 70083 [Body of a slider for a slide fastener] (Presiding Judge Shibuya) [Issue 1] Where components (sliders) manufactured and sold abroad are incorporated into finished products (bags, etc.) and distributed within Japan, does the component manufacturer bear liability for a joint tort or otherwise for infringement of a Japanese design right? ⇒ No. Because the manufacture and sale took place abroad, th