Court weighs in on IPR violations

China's top court effectively strengthened the intellectual property rights of famous brands and products yesterday when it issued a judicial interpretation rendering the Anti-Unfair Competition Law applicable to a wider array of cases.

The interpretation, published on the website of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), detailed the clauses covering counterfeiting, false or exaggerated advertising, and infringements of commercial secrets. It was the first interpretation of the Anti-Unfair Competition Law since it was enacted in 1993.

The Anti-Unfair Competition Law does not specifically grant intellectual property rights (IPR), but in practise it is widely applied in IPR cases.