Newsletter
SETTLEMENTS IN TRADE-MARK-RELATED ADMINISTRA-TIVE DISPUTES
In past trademark and patent disputes, the Intel-lectual Property Office (IPO) has been unwilling to settle, whether at the administrative appeal stage or during administrative litigation. Set-tlements have been successfully reached in only a small number of cases. A 2001 service mark opposition case in the Taipei High Administra-tive Court yielded Taiwan's first ever settlement in a trademark opposition administrative suit. Through the mediation of the presiding judge, the trademark applicant concluded an in-court settlement with the IPO and the opposition peti-tioner, allowing an administrative dispute that had lasted several years to be resolved without the need for a court judgment, and enabling the applicant to register the disputed trademark.
Subsequently, in 2001 and 2002 cases, the Taipei High Administrative Court mediated the first two in-court settlements in administrative litiga-tion over trademark registration decisions.
After the court mediated the settlement in the trademark opposition case mentioned above, we have expected that the model would provide guidance for settlements in future similar cases. However, as of the end of 2003, there were no new settlements, and none at all in patent cases.