On May 12, the SPC set up a civil law codification team, chaired by Vice Presidents Xi Xiaoming, He Rong, Tao Kaiyuan, with Du Wanhua 杜万华 serving as Director of the Office.  Xi Xiaoming introduced the preliminary work of the SPC in this area.  He noted that the SPC intends to give full play to its experts in an advisory role to the NPC in the codification of civil code as called for in the Fourth Plenum, and in that light the Supreme Court established a consultant and Expert Committee for the codification of the civil code.

My comment: It is particularly gratifying to see former IP officials like Madame Tao Kaiyuan contribute to the work of the civil code. At the same time, we are seeing more civil law law judges working on the development of China’s specialized IP courts, thereby demonstrating increasing cross-fertilization between IP issues and general civil law issues in China.  The more IP is regarded as a private right, the more likely it is that China’s goals of developing an innovative economy can be achieved, IMHO.

Content source: Susan Finder and the Supreme People’s Court website, via the Chinalaw Listserve.

Photo source: Mark Cohen at the April 2015 “First China Intellectual Property Judicial Conference” (with subtitle indicating “under the background of judicial reform”). Chief Judge Song Xiaoming of the SPC IPR Tribunal presenting opening comments.