Government (not Starbucks) sued counterfeiter on civil public interest and successfully claimed huge amount of punitive damages for consumers.

06.24.2021

China: Government (not Starbucks) sued counterfeiter on civil public interest and successfully claimed huge amount of punitive damages for consumers.

(Right side is fake)

After the court imposed a penalty of fine for an amount of RMB 3.2 million (US$330,000) against the counterfeiter for the criminal offence of trademark infringement, Consumer council in Jiangsu Province as opposed to the trademark owner (in this case Starbucks) the first time took initiative to sue the counterfeiter at court civilly on basis of public interest. In May 2021, the court ordered the counterfeiter to pay punitive damages for an exceptionally high amount for RMB 21.7 million (US$2.3 million). Besides, the court also ordered the counterfeiter to publish an apology notice on newspaper to the public consumers. The way to dispose of the punitive damages however remain undecided.
 
Hong Kong: Grants first standard patent by original grant in 14 months

The Original Grant Patent (OGP) system was launched in December 2019 in Hong Kong providing a direct route for invention patent registration for a maximum term of protection of 20 years.

According to the information given by the Hong Kong Patents Registry, as of 31 May, 2021, the Hong Kong Patents Registry had received a total of 426 OGP applications, of which 33 per cent (142 applications) were submitted by Hong Kong residents or enterprises and 67 per cent (284 applications) were from overseas applicants.

The first standard patent by original grant was granted in early June 2021 and within 14 months from the filing. It relates to an invention of the use of artificial intelligence to manage inventory in an e-commerce system.

(captured from Hong Kong Patents Registry’s webpage)