2019 China’s Top 50 Representative IP Cases Shenzhen Weibang Technology Co. Ltd v. Li Jianyi & Shenzhen Yuancheng Intelligence Equipment Co. Ltd (2019最高法民申6342号) Each year in China there are hundreds of disputes over patent ownership. A significant part of them are related to “Service Inventions”, which are defined in Article 6 of the Chinese Patent Law as any invention made by an employee (1) in the course of performing the employee’s duties or (2) mainly by using the materials or technical means of the employer. Under Chinese patent law, these inventions automatically belong to the employer. No separate assignment or employment agreement needs to be in place. Article 12 of…
