On February 26, the Intellectual Property Office of Jiangsu Province and the Third Civil Division of the Jiangsu Provincial Higher People’s Court held an exchange meeting to discuss the effective alignment between administrative and judicial protection of intellectual property (IP), with the aim of strengthening professional collaboration and enhancing IP protection effectiveness.

The IP Protection Division of the Intellectual Property Office of Jiangsu Province presented the province’s achievements and challenges in administrative IP protection and outlined proposals for establishing a comprehensive, coordinated protection framework. The Third Civil Division shared judicial practices and experience gained from adjudicating IP cases. Both parties agreed that reinforcing coordinated protection mechanisms and enhancing collaborative processes will help align administrative and judicial standards, improve enforcement and adjudication capabilities, and enhance the effectiveness of IP protection. This is of significant importance for advancing Jiangsu’s development as a strong province in intellectual property, science and technology, and manufacturing, and for fostering a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment.

Participants engaged in detailed discussions on specific measures to deepen administrative–judicial cooperation on IP and expressed willingness to explore five priority areas: I: Information sharing: Further improving a two-way information reporting mechanism to strengthen joint efforts against abnormal patent applications, unlawful patent agency practices, and repeated malicious infringement; II, Resource sharing: Enhancing technical support by building and utilizing a robust pool of technical investigators, and promoting scientific and standardized approaches to determining technical facts in both administrative and judicial IP protection; III, Regional cooperation: Strengthening provincial-level coordination to foster a “unified provincial protection framework”, exploring practical measures and joint enforcement projects for cross-regional cooperation within the Yangtze River Delta, and actively participating in international IP governance; IV. Talent co-training: Enhancing professional exchange through staff exchanges, joint training programs, and case-study learning, thereby improving the professional competence and enforcement capacity of administrative and judicial personnel; IV. Policy coordination: Implementing the Opinions of the Supreme People’s Court and the China National Intellectual Property Administration on Strengthening Coordinated Protection of Intellectual Property, developing Jiangsu’s corresponding implementation measures, and planning a new round of comprehensive IP protection policies in connection with the formulation of the “15th Five-Year Plan” for IP development.

This meeting has laid a solid foundation for further strengthening coordinated administrative and judicial IP protection in Jiangsu. Going forward, the Intellectual Property Office of Jiangsu Province will continue to enhance the efficiency of administrative adjudication of patent disputes, enrich diversified dispute resolution mechanisms, and further leverage the integrated administrative–judicial coordination framework. These efforts will jointly advance the establishment of a comprehensive IP protection system and propel Jiangsu’s intellectual property development to new heights.