Osaka District Court, Reiwa 5 (Wa) 10217 [Three-dimensional reticular fiber aggregate] <Presiding Judge Matsuami>
更新日：10月9日
Article information
Article type: Case note
Classification: Patents
Issues: Employee inventions
First published on this site: 2026-10-03
Court: Osaka District Court
Case number: Reiwa 5 (Wa) 10217
Display/classification checked: 2026-10-03
Osaka District Court, Reiwa 5 (Wa) 10217 [Three-dimensional reticular fiber aggregate] <Presiding Judge Matsuami>
Claim for employee-invention remuneration.
⇒ Dismissed.
(Excerpts from the judgment, translated)
In establishing and amending the reward rules, the defendant consulted general employment rules and persons knowledgeable about intellectual property, disclosed drafts to employees, and heard their opinions. Payment under these rules, adopted through lawful procedures, could not be regarded as unreasonable.
Although the defendant's products might be used as general-purpose three-dimensional reticular fiber aggregates, including cushioning material, their use for bedding mattresses—the basis of the plaintiffs' alleged excess sales—had been commercialized and sold for a period but received low evaluations for mattress performance, and commercialization ended.
In these circumstances, there was nothing unreasonable in the defendant's determination that the condition for an exploitation reward, namely making a significant contribution to the company through exercise of industrial property rights, was not met, and that no such reward should be paid for these inventions.
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Revision history
Revision history is maintained by appending entries.
2026-10-03: First published on this site; classification, article information, and consultation link added.
