Patent Trial and Appeal Board Supports 'Dedicated Trials' for Secondary Batteries and Next-Generation Communications

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) will add secondary batteries and next-generation communications to the fields handled by dedicated trial divisions.

The PTAB announced on the 5th that, in addition to the existing semiconductor and mobility fields (since October 2023), the dedicated trial divisions will also be responsible for secondary batteries (from March) and next-generation communications (from May) starting this year.

The dedicated trial divisions handle important trial cases where securing technology at the national level is urgent, ensuring consistent and accurate processing. Experienced trial judges with extensive examination and trial experience are assigned to manage these trial tasks.

The PTAB will also prioritize assigning personnel to divisions with higher case volumes to prevent imbalances in processing times caused by fluctuations in workload across different fields.

Through this, it is expected that issues such as prolonged examination processing times caused by a sudden increase in cases in fields like biotechnology and trademarks can be resolved.

Additionally, for cases where trials are requested after lengthy examination processes, the chief trial judge will oversee to ensure prompt handling. For disputes such as invalidation and scope of rights confirmation trials between parties, concentrated trial procedures will be utilized to prevent unnecessary prolonged conflicts, according to the PTAB.

Furthermore, this year the PTAB plans to newly introduce the ‘Trial Witness System’ and the ‘Ex Officio Amendment System for Trial Requests,’ which will be implemented starting from the 15th of this month.

The Trial Witness System plays a role in enhancing reliability by hearing opinions from external experts during the trial of major cases that have significant impact on the industry. The Ex Officio Amendment System allows the trial judge to amend minor or clear defects in the trial request form on their own authority.

Park Jong-ju, President of the PTAB, stated, “The PTAB has made efforts to listen to voices from the field, including companies and the patent attorney community,” and added, “This year as well, we will faithfully perform our institutional role to provide trial administrative services that meet the expectations of the public by listening to and reflecting voices from the field.”