This blog reviews Zhao Ye’s report on trade secret adjudication by the SPC IP Tribunal. Based on 11 published cases from 2025, the report highlights a sharp increase in damages, systematic reversal of lower court decisions, expanded use of burden-shifting, and stronger sanctions for evidence spoliation. In my view, these decisions also function as a form of strategic signaling, indicating a more rights-protective orientation in judicial practice. However, they do not yet constitute binding, system-wide legal change, which would require further judicial interpretations or formal designation as guiding cases. The emerging judicial trends may make Chinese civil courts a more viable forum for trade secret enforcement.
Regifting, Signaling, and Implementation: Comparing China’s IP Commitments Across the 2026 NTE, Phase One, and the 2016 JCCT
The recently released 2026 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (March 31, 2026) (the “NTE”) provides a useful opportunity to reassess U.S.–China intellectual property negotiations, particularly the Phase One Trade […]
Reading the SPC IP Court’s 2025 Annual Report: Data, Composition, and Reporting Structure
This post examines the SPC IP Court’s 2025 Annual Report by focusing on underlying data, case composition, and reporting structure rather than headline claims. It shows that foreign participation is concentrated in administrative appeals, that punitive damages and trade secret cases remain a small share of the docket, and that plant variety protection is receiving increased attention. The post argues that careful attention to denominators, omissions, and how data are presented is necessary to understand what the report actually shows.
New Trade Secret Protection Rules in China
China’s recently released 2026 trade secret rules are best understood not as a major legal reform but as an administrative modernization of an enforcement system badly in need of an update. Although international pressure played a role, the rules largely respond to China’s own technological development and growing need to protect confidential information. They show that IP change in China is driven at least as much by domestic economic evolution as by foreign demands.
Reforms to China’s Patent Injunction Practice in a Domestic Comparative Perspective
Injunctions in Chinese patent are deeply rooted in Chinese IP civil and administrative practice. Due to the complex nature of China’s legal system, any analysis of the need for reforms to China’s patent litigation system should also take into account the nature of China’s civil patent system, the availability of injunctive-type relief from its administrative system, the potential impact of such reform on other civil remedies., as well as the potential impact on foreign litigants.
White & Case 18th Annual Taiwan Roundtable
I will speak at the 18th Annual White & Case Taiwan Roundtable next Friday, Sept 22 in Taipei. The toipcs that I will discuss include: the developing relationship between sanctions and intellectual […]
The Proposed FTC Rule on Non-Compete Agreements and China
Should the FTC’s proposed rule banning non-compete agreements be applied in an international context? The FTC failed to consider the international implications of its proposed rule. My comments explore the potential adverse impact on trade secret protection in China, on patent and trade secret strategies, and on competitiveness of US technology clusters.
Are Chinese Courts Out to “Nab” Western Technology: An Inconclusive WSJ Article
How accurate was a Feb. 20, 2023 article of the Wall Street Journal that reports on a new development in China’s efforts to nab Western technology? I discuss what the available data says and refute the notion that this development is new. It nonetheless remains concerning.
Legislative Roundup, and a Roundtable on the New Civil Procedure Law
A roundup of recent China IP-related legislative developments.
IPO Comments on CNIPA Provisions On Patent Application Behavior
The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) published its Revised Draft Provisions Concerning Regulating Patent Application Behavior (Draft for Public Comment) (关于规范申请专利行为的若干规定修改草案[征求意见稿]) on May 6, 2021 (the “Draft Provisions”). The purpose of this […]
China IPR - Intellectual Property Developments in China 