Tokyo District Court, Case No. 2023 (Wa) 70402
Updated: 4 hours ago
Article information
Categories: Patents
Topics: Inventive step / Motivation and teaching away / Damages / Joint torts
Published on this website: 2026-09-29
Tokyo District Court, Case No. 2023 (Wa) 70402
[Siphonic rain gutter system] (Presiding Judge Nakajima)
*Inventive step recognized.
The inventions in Exhibits Otsu A25 and Otsu A26 lack motivation for combination because their technical approaches are opposites (the former generates turbulence; the latter prevents it).
The invention in Exhibit Otsu A21 (ordinary drainage) and that in Exhibit Otsu A25 (siphonic drainage) differ in technical concept, and there is no motivation to combine them.
⇒ The cited invention (Exhibit Otsu A21) was identified as a "conventional drainage system" from the design index of a flow coefficient of "0.6," and was held to differ in technical concept from a siphonic drainage system.
<Damages based on joint tort>
Because the defendants merely aided the infringement and do not qualify as "persons who infringed," the profits they earned from component sales are not included in "profits" under Article 102(2) of the Patent Act.
(Quoted wording is translated.)
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