IP Newsletter | Winter 2017/18
	PATENT
	New "International Panel" To Be Established in the Korean Courts
	An amendment to the Court Organization Act (the "Amendment") was approved by the Korean National Assembly on November 24, 2017. This Amendment allows the Patent Court and the District Courts handling IP cases (i.e., patent, utility model, design, trademark, and plant variety cases) to establish International Panels where parties may present evidence and arguments in a foreign language. Overall, we believe the Amendment will foster a better environment for foreign companies to enforce or defend their IP rights in Korea.
	1. Submitting evidence and presenting arguments in a foreign language
	In Korean Court proceedings, parties are not allowed to use a foreign language in their written submissions or during oral argument. However, the Amendment stipulates that the district courts in the five statutory venues for IPR disputes (i.e., Seoul Central, Daejeon, Daegu, Busan, and Gwangju) and the Patent Court may permit parties to use a foreign language in court proceedings as long as the parties agree. These cases would be designated as "International Cases" and would be handled exclusively by "International Panels" set up by the courts. The parties would be able to present arguments and submit evidence in a foreign language, such as English, and the Court would issue a decision written in the foreign language. Although the Amendment provides a legal basis for the Patent Court and the district courts to establish International Panels, the specific procedural rules and details (such as the procedure for obtaining permission, acceptable foreign languages, and the like) still need to be established by the Supreme Court. The Courts will also consider permitting technical experts and inventors to testify in their native languages.
	2. The first International Panel in Asia to be established in 2018
	The Amendment is expected to accelerate the creation of International Panels, and after the grace period to implement the Amendment (six months after promulgation), the Patent Court and the district courts have indicated they expect to establish the first International Panel by the middle of 2018. If the International Panel is established as scheduled, then it will be the first international-focused IP Court in Asia. It is hoped that the establishment of the International Panel may attract more international IP cases to Korea, by providing better opportunities for foreign litigants to effectively enforce their IP rights. More specifically, since parties will be allowed to submit evidence in a foreign language, foreign litigants would be able to utilize evidence and materials filed in foreign jurisdictions directly in Korean lawsuits, without the need to translate the materials into Korean. Similarly, expert witnesses used in foreign litigation could be more easily used in Korean litigation without the need to hire a local Korean expert as is currently common, thereby saving considerable time and money. It is also expected that court proceedings will benefit from allowing the use of foreign languages by encouraging improvements in the substance, quality and transparency of proceedings, in order to make Korean courts a more attractive venue for IP lawsuits. The International Panels are thus expected to attract more international cases to Korea, and to advance discussions about establishing an Asian Unified Patent Court.
	If International Panels are established in the Patent Court and the District Courts under the Amendment, then the substance, quality, transparency and procedural characteristics of IP lawsuits in Korea are expected to be substantially improved in line with the needs of international clients. The Supreme Court's efforts to outline further details regarding International Panels are being closely watched, and are certain to generate further discussion and commentary.
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	Sang-Wook HAN swhan@kimchang.com Chunsoo LEE cslee1@kimchang.com
	Kenneth K. CHO kenneth.cho@kimchang.com Ki Yun NAM kynam@kimchang.com
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