AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE JURISDICTION REPORT: JAPAN
Ryo Maruyama Kyosei International Patent Office
At 2:46 pm on March 11, 2011, an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale occurred in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of the Tohoku region of northeastern Japan. Tat region, which also was soon hit by a huge tsunami, has been devastated, with thousands of people killed and many more injured. Some 350,000 people have been forced to live at evacuation sites, and many are suffering a lack of food, water, medicine and heat, a severe shortage of gasoline, and other problems.
Although our office, in central Tokyo, was undamaged, the initial quake was the biggest and longest-lasting that any of us had ever experienced, and we felt many strong aſtershocks that day and aſterwards. Te train and subway service was initially totally suspended in the entire region, and almost all of our staff had to remain at the office that night. Some of us still feel anxiety due to aſtershocks as well as other quakes in nearby areas, power failures, inadequate public transport, and other difficulties. For most of us, the problems at the nuclear-power plants in Fukushima are now our greatest concern. We have been steadily checking news reports about that situation via television, the Internet, radio and other media. But in spite of the difficult conditions, we are doing well, and our office is functioning as usual. We very much appreciate the expressions of concern and warm words of encouragement that we have received from our friends, colleagues, and others in Japan and overseas. We also are grateful for the special consideration so promptly given by IP offices overseas to our Japanese clients in response to the disaster.
In Japan, relief measures in a state of emergency are provided for in accordance with laws and cabinet orders, which typically provide, as necessary, extensions of legally required procedural deadlines. In the case of a huge disaster such as the current one, the Law on Special Measures for Preserving Rights and Interests of Victims of Specified Extraordinary Disasters is invoked, and Article 3 (3) of that law has been applied to intellectual property laws to extend the time for many procedures. As examples, procedural requirements relating to the following can be eased if a party who was unable to meet a procedural deadline due to a disaster proceeds—within 14 days of becoming capable of proceeding—as is normally required: amending a specification; filing a request to apply the Patent Law exception regarding lack of novelty of an invention; claiming domestic priority; submitting a divisional application; requesting a substantive examination; late payment of patent fees or fees to request cancellation of an official decision; and requesting renewal of a trademark registration.
Many attorneys and applicants who suffered damage due to the recent Tohoku earthquake complained to the JPO about their inability to comply with procedures within the required period, and they requested that relief
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“ IN THE CASE OF A HUGE DISASTER SUCH AS THE CURRENT ONE, THE LAW ON SPECIAL MEASURES FOR PRESERVING RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OF VICTIMS OF SPECIFIED EXTRAORDINARY DISASTERS IS INVOKED, AND ARTICLE 3 (3) OF THAT LAW HAS BEEN APPLIED TO INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWS TO EXTEND THE TIME FOR MANY PROCEDURES.”
measures be adopted regarding deadlines. In response, the JPO agreed to extend deadlines relating to applications, pending JPO trials and other matters as necessary, based on Article 3 (2) of the Law on Urgent Measures Concerning Extension of Periods of Permissions, which was instituted following the great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake in 1995. Also, if requested by a party that had difficulty receiving or dealing with documents sent by the JPO, the JPO also temporarily stopped sending documents to that party.
Hopefully, we humans will learn from such disasters and thereby develop a better future based on such experiences. We in Japan want to learn as much as possible from the great Tohoku earthquake and recover fully as soon as possible. We also hope that people in other countries will learn from our experience. In the meantime, we appreciate your ongoing prayers for the well-being of those most affected by this disaster.
Ryo Maruyama is a patent attorney and vice president of Kyosei International Patent Office. He can be contacted at:
kyosei@tkc.att.ne.jp
World Intellectual Property Review March/April 2011 51
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