China's first foreign IP arbitrator appointed in Shenyang

Jan Carl Block, the regional manager of the Northeast China branch of the German Chamber of Commerce in China, was appointed as the honorary arbitrator of the Shenyang Administration Court of Intellectual Property on April 21.

Block became the first foreigner in China to act as an intellectual property arbitrator.

On the same day, the Shenyang Administration Court of Intellectual Property was jointly established by the Shenyang Arbitration Commission and the Sino-German (Shenyang) High-end Equipment Manufacturing Industrial Park Management Committee.

It will accept international and domestic copyright, trademark, patent and other IP contract disputes, provide legal consulting services involving IP contract disputes, and publicize and promote the IP arbitration legal system.

The appointment of foreigners as arbitrators makes it convenient for foreign parties to appoint arbitrators to participate in arbitration trials on a larger scale. It improves the practicality of foreign-related arbitration cases and contributes to fair trials.

Block's appointment comes just days before "World Intellectual Property Day," which falls on April 26 every year.

Shenyang's IP court is an effective tool for handling IP disputes and reducing related resolution costs for enterprises in the China-Germany industrial park. This is especially true for foreign-funded enterprises, which are usually willing to resolve disputes through arbitration.

As of 2020, the China-Germany industrial park has 537 valid invention patents, 256 patent applications and 329 patent authorizations. More than 80 German-owned enterprises and 127 foreign-funded enterprises have started businesses in the industrial park.