Japanese Patent Law

Cases and Comments

Edited by Christopher Heath & Atsuhiro Furuta

About the Editors:

Christopher Heath is a judge at the European Patent Office and former head of the Max Planck Institute’s Asian Department.

Atsuhiro Furuta is an administrative judge at the Japanese Patent Office. He graduated with a Master’s in Physics from the University of Tokyo and for two years was a guest researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Patent, Copyright and Competition Law in Munich.

About this book:

Japanese Patent Law is the first comprehensive work in English on all aspects of Japanese patent law presenting 66 cases with expert explanatory comments from academics, attorneys, judges and Japanese Patent Office officials. While not a common law jurisdiction, Japanese patent law in the past 20 years has been shaped by landmark decisions of the Supreme Court and, since 2005, the IP High Court. Approaching Japanese patent law via landmark decisions is arguably the most comprehensive manner of understanding the subject matter. Many of the cases appear in English for the first time.

What’s in this book:

Following an informative introduction explaining the economic importance of the patent system for Japan, the cases cover such specific issues as the following:

• definition of an invention;
• assessment of prior art, novelty and inventive step;
• rights of co-inventors;
• disclaimers, corrections and amendments;
• scope and limits of patent protection;
• distinction between repair and reconstruction;
• doctrine of equivalents;
• domestic and international jurisdiction in patent matters;
• interim proceedings and measures;
• defence of invalidity;
• damage calculation;
• patent term extension system; and
• utility models.

Each case commentary follows a uniform structure, including background, summary of the facts, analysis and comparative remarks. The latter allows the reader to put developments in Japan in an international context.

How this will help you:

With the wealth of knowledge it makes available – leading Japanese patent cases in English translation, comparative case commentaries by leading experts on Japanese patent law, comprehensive analytical coverage of all aspects of Japanese patent law and coverage of related fields such as licensing, antitrust and civil procedure – this easy-to-use book will be warmly welcomed by patent attorneys and other practitioners (including Japanese patent practitioners advising foreign clients), patent academics and patent offices worldwide.