截至2021年底，中国发明专利有效量为359.7万件，有效商标注册量3724万件，高新技术企业拥有有效发明专利占国内企业总量的63.6%。伴随“知识产权强国”成为新国策，该领域预期经历更为快速的发展，今年上榜ALB China 知识产权业务排名的机构无疑是未来的引领者。
2021年，《知识产权强国建设纲要（2021—2035年）》和《“十四五”国家知识产权保护和运用规划》相继印发，前者为中国未来15年知识产权事业发展提出总纲，后者则为未来5年该领域发展提出若干具体目标及规划。
“中国知识产权立法、司法、行政环境不断优化，越来越多市场主体开始重视知识产权布局和维权行动……医药、通讯领域外，涉互联网、大数据、电子商务、人工智能、区块链、新能源等新兴技术领域的专利诉讼案件也越来越多。”
- 龙传红，中国贸促会专利商标事务所
两份文件外，过去一年中国知识产权领域也频现亮点：新《专利法》《著作权法》正式实施；专利及商标注册审查实现提速增效；多项促进知识产权运用的举措出台；中国继续积极参与知识产权全球治理……诸般背景为知识产权机构快速发展奠定基础，也反映在他们过去一年的成绩之中。
今年的ALB China 知识产权业务排名与往年相同，分为“专利”和“商标/著作权”两部分，通过对知识产权机构工作情况、市场占有率、团队成长、客户情况、知名度及发展势头展开考量，对他们进行了分等级呈现，其中第一级代表了其所属司法辖区内的最强知识产权律所。
与去年相比，在“专利”部分，9家机构排名提升，6家机构新入选排名；在“商标/著作权”部分，则有12家机构排名提升，同样6家机构新入选排名——这样的变化彰显出律所不断提高知识产权业务的重要性，也表明了该市场潜伏的激烈竞争。
服务需求变化
中国经济的转型需求，加之疫情带来的深远影响，都促发商业趋势及法规政策的快速变更，进而影响中外企业在华知识产权需求，对此上榜机构有着深刻感受。
“随着中国知识产权保护力度逐年增强，立法、司法、行政环境不断优化，越来越多市场主体开始重视在知识产权上的布局和维权行动。”中国贸促会专利商标事务所所长龙传红总结道。
“企业有更强的维权意愿，不再满足于‘纸面上的权利’，希望通过已获得的知识产权强化竞争优势，实现价值增长；企业的知识产权风险意识明显增强，越来越多企业在启动重要项目前，会进行知识产权法律风险分析和评估。”
- 陈明涛，通商律师事务所
通商律师事务所的陈明涛律师对此表示认同：“一方面，企业有更强的维权意愿，不再满足于‘纸面上的权利’，希望通过已获得的知识产权强化竞争优势，实现价值增长；另一方面，企业的知识产权风险意识明显增强，既体现在企业日常经营中越来越重视知识产权合规，也体现在越来越多企业在启动重要项目前，会进行知识产权法律风险分析和评估。”
“2021年受疫情和国家政策调整影响，知识产权服务市场呈现阶段性调整状态，包括非正常专利申请的减少、企业调整专利申请预算等，都对产业有一定结构性影响。”紫藤知识产权集团副总裁文明律师则观察到，“不过此类影响并非坏事，反而促使整个知识产权服务行业呈现出更为健康的蓬勃发展状态。”
“知识产权部门最初都是成本中心，而伴随企业对收益的要求以及国家政策的鼓励，越来越多企业开始期待利用多年的知识产权积累创造价值，这也反映在知识产权法院的受案量中：例如深圳中院2020年知识产权案件数量上升了60%以上。”
- 文明，紫藤知识产权集团
在他看来，这主要借由中国创新型企业知识产权工作发展阶段的变化。他解释道：“企业的知识产权部门最初都是成本中心，而伴随企业对收益的要求以及国家政策的鼓励，越来越多企业开始期待利用多年的知识产权积累创造价值，这也反映在国内知识产权法院的受案量激增之中：以深圳中院为例，2020年收到知识产权案件数量同比上升了60%以上，2021年知识产权不正当竞争类案件数量同比上升了近50%。
成立三年来，紫藤一直以“行业中的真正创新者”为目标客户，因此“创新型客户面临着需求的转变，紫藤的服务也在转变”。这种变化可以分为三方面，“专利申请侧，客户慢慢从规模向质量发展，聘请知识产权机构做专利竞争性分析及布局等；风险侧，客户开始从被动风险应对转向主动风险预警及积极维权；除此之外，越来越多的客户开始关注全球知识产权交易的发展动态与，并咨询紫藤为其定制企业专门的知识产权运营方案，例如专利池建设方案、对外许可方案等。这些都是产业转型发展的新阶段所带来的新兴知识产权服务的需求。”
在这样的转型背景下，具体到过去一年服务需求突出的行业及知识产权业务领域，龙传红所长指出，涉及新领域、新业态发明专利纠纷增多，“除医药、通讯领域外，涉互联网、大数据、电子商务、人工智能、区块链、新能源等新兴技术领域的专利诉讼案件也越来越多”。
“此外，涉及标准必要专利（SEP）的诉讼和无效案件明显增加，凸显了SEP专利的重要性和热度以及业界借助无效和诉讼来促进谈判的趋势”，他说，“专利申请业务表现出类似趋势：医药、通讯领域仍是热点，涉及互联网+、人工智能、大数据、物联网、自动驾驶、区块链等新兴领域的专利申请增长态势也十分明显。”
“在商标和版权领域，文化创意产业的申请和保护成为新热点。随着元宇宙和NFT为代表的数字商品经济蓬勃开展，如何在虚拟世界有效保护客户权益成为需要重点关注的方向。”龙所长说。
过去一年，汇业律师事务所知识产权团队为消费品、医药和互联网行业在内的多领域客户提供了服务，汇业北京办公室主任王志勇律师告诉ALB，伴随法律修改和司法解释出台，此类客户对知识产权保护的需求的确形成了一些新特点。
“知识产权权利人更关注惩罚性赔偿问题，客户对此明显期待更多；另一方面，2021年是数据安全和个人信息保护立法元年，诸多互联网大厂以及大型快消品公司等在汇业的帮助下，很早就开始了相关工作布局。”
- 王志勇，汇业律师事务所
“一方面，知识产权权利人更关注惩罚性赔偿问题，客户在要求汇业知产团队提供服务时，对于惩罚性赔偿明显期待更多，而我们也承办了中国惩罚性赔偿第一案。”他说，“另一方面，2021年是数据安全和个人信息保护立法元年，《数据安全法》《个人信息保护法》先后通过，诸多互联网大厂以及大型快消品公司等在汇业的帮助下，很早就开始了相关工作布局。”
北京市正见永申律师事务所知识产权团队重点服务于消费品、医疗大健康、金融行业客户，合伙人李晓红律师指出，过去一年此类客户的需求主要集中于商标保护、对恶意主体的打击和维权、知识产权合同审核方面，服务中他们遭遇了不少新情况，例如“恶意抢注行为越来越隐蔽和复杂，新型恶意抢注商标事件时有发生，需要权利人更为积极的维权和国家机关更主动的遏制“。此外，“新商业模式和新型产品的商标申请保护与固有的商品区分表指定商品服务名称存在契合度问题，亟待进一步调整”。
在华进律师事务所管理合伙人黎叶律师的感受中，过去一年知识产权服务需求出现明显增长的行业包括消费品，例如饮料、白酒；家装及商业装修行业；通讯设备行业；以及个人健康护理产品、医疗设备行业等。“受商业和立法趋势影响，客户过去一年的知产需求集中在商标确权行政纠纷、商标侵权维权纠纷、专利侵权维权纠纷、著作权及外观侵权维权纠纷、美国337调查、跨境电商下架、游戏合同纠纷、不正当竞争等领域。”他总结道。
策略助力
洞察市场需求并提供服务外，上榜机构也在不断优化内部策略，助力知识产权业务发展。
2022年，道可特律师事务所先后完成与达晓、大器、知元三家律所的合并。道可特高级合伙人、道可特总部管委会委员、北京办公室管委会联席主任林蔚律师说：“达晓、大器、知元都见长于知识产权领域且各有侧重，达晓擅长互联网、通讯、新能源等涉技术较强的领域；大器在著作权法和文娱领域有鲜明优势；知元在医药、化工领域深受客户认可。”整合后的道可特新知识产权团队实现了优势互补，且具备了近30名合伙人的团队规模，未来将继续关注互联网、半导体、生命健康和新能源四条赛道。
谈到上述赛道客户需求的变化，林律师深有感触：“在进入存量市场博弈的商业趋势和强化知识产权保护的立法趋势下，互联网领域客户需求集中于与竞争对手的知识产权博弈、数据合规和竞争合规；半导体和新能源客户集中在知识产权挖掘、布局的护城河构建和攻防的强需求阶段；医药领域在疫情时代机遇叠加集中采购利空、并要照顾到创新与仿制的平衡，需求多样，专利链接制度成为新增长点，药品技术交易更加频繁，衍生出较多的诉讼和非诉讼需求。”
“总体看，虽然有经济下行压力，但上述赛道客户对知识产权的投入仍在加码。”他说，“这对法律服务从业者在技术和商业上的本领提出了更高要求。”新道可特知识产权团队正是期待通过资源整合，未来更好地满足客户的高阶需求。
在通商律师事务所，借助开拓较早的知识产权业务，知识产权团队业已代理了多起颇具影响力的知识产权纠纷。在过去几年，资本市场、并购等交易类业务对于知识产权服务的需求快速增长，而通商恰是上述领域的领衔律所，两大板块优势的结合为通商知识产权业务带来了更多机会。
“通商在各种投融资活动中为客户提供了包括专利权属纠纷风险分析、专利稳定性分析、FTO风险分析等深度专利尽职调查，并成功参与了多起针对拟上市企业的知识产权狙击事件。”通商的陈敬律师分享道。“过去一年，伴随企业对科创板上市规则的深入理解以及北交所的成立，专利在企业知识产权整体规划中的重要性日渐突出，企业对于高价值专利培育和挖掘的需求也日趋旺盛。”
“作为以高端资本市场法律服务起家的律师事务所，通商能够更深刻地理解客户在投融资过程中可能面临的风险以及可能把握的机遇。未来我们也将充分利用这一优势，为客户提供优质、贴心的法律服务。”陈律师说。
法商结合
过去几年，法律服务专业化趋势促生了众多专精行业领域的法律专家，而知识产权作为一项融合了产业知识、商业逻辑与法律思维的专业，更呼唤“法商结合”的人才，为客户提供更为综合、更有创意的服务。
“知识产权是个学科交叉的领域，融合了法律与商业、自然科学与社会科学。”通商的巩靖律师坦言，“为了向客户提供更综合的服务，通商知识产权团队在工作中的第一项任务是去理解客户：理解客户的行业背景、业务逻辑、竞争环境，甚至于核心技术。”
为了更好地实现“理解”，通商知识产权团队采用了建立常年法律顾问服务合作关系的方法，以“与客户更紧密地衔接，为客户提供更切实可行的建议”。巩律师告诉ALB，例如对于身处蓝海的企业，通商会将更多精力放在协助客户进行知识产权储备和知识产权管理体系优化，建立或者巩固先发优势；对于逐渐步入红海的企业，则会更加关注他们可能面临的知识产权法律风险，提示客户进行相应防范。
在中国贸促会专利商标事务所龙传红所长看来，“知识产权领域愈发呈现法律与商业融合态势，这要求知识产权服务行业提供更综合的服务”，为此专利商标事务所致力于为客户提供一站式服务。
龙所长具体介绍道：“在传统业务上，我们继续发挥申请、检索、无效和诉讼方面的优势，同时拓展服务领域，根据客户侧重的技术方向与国内外潜在的商业需求，帮助企业进行知识产权的挖掘、分析、导航、预警、风险防控等，进行知识产权布局。在知识产权运用等其他方面，我们也提供知识产权的转让、许可、尽职调查、价值评估、质押融资等服务。我们力争提供知识产权全链条服务，从而更好地帮助企业搭建完善的知识产权保护及运用体系。”
涵盖知识产权全价值链条也是紫藤的业务布局重点。“2019年初我加入紫藤的时候公司才有8位员工，如今超过了600人。”文明律师如此讲述紫藤的快速成长，“我们在知识产权申请、诉讼、许可、争议解决、交易运营、分析咨询等方面进行了全链条业务部署，这是紫藤比较独特的地方。”
紫藤的另一个特点则是“来自产业，服务产业”。文明律师告诉ALB，紫藤的高阶人员一部分曾担任国内外知名企业法律或知识产权部门管理者，“这让我们能够站在甲方的角度思考问题：比如一家企业在做年度知识产权规划时需要考虑哪些因素？如何才能符合企业管理层对知识产权布局的期望？”如此不仅能够站在同一平台和客户对话，甚至一定程度给予客户启发。此外，紫藤还很重视跟进产业发展，除了定期的产业动态更新，还在打造自己的产业专利库。
面对客户不断提升的知识产权服务需求，道可特则给出了“打造法律服务产品”的答案。林蔚律师告诉ALB，具体到知识产权领域，产品化思路分三个层面。“一是统一服务和产品质量标准。二是从业务类型上进行标类、非标类和创新类业务的区分，针对标类业务打造成熟产品和服务流程；针对非标类业务在保证质量和标准前提下满足客户定制化需求；针对创新类业务，则通过专门的研发团队打造面向未来的产品。”
最后，法律服务产品化还能让律所积极和数据库、咨询机构、政府智库、科技公司等第三方机构合作，通过专项报告、白皮书、风控产品等，向客户提供涵盖法律、行业和商业的综合性产品。
过去一年，汇业知识产权团队参与了众多跨境知识产权合作项目，项目涉及多法域、多产业，也要求团队对于法律、商业逻辑有深刻理解。王志勇律师告诉ALB，汇业专门处理跨境知识产权业务的团队在过去一年代理了众多跨国公司知识产权诉讼业务，并为上海国际贸易知识产权海外维权基地提供法律咨询服务、参与了广交会线上知识产权服务等。
未来，伴随“跨境电商知识产权保护业务需求增长旺盛、大型跨国公司在华知识产权保护事宜稳定增长、中国本土高科技创新型企业走向海外过程中知识产权法律服务需求也越来越多”，这支50余人组成，业务涵盖机械、通讯、化学等多个领域的团队也将迎来更大发展空间。
更“可见”的品牌
修炼“内功”之外，过去一年，上榜机构也积极思考提升品牌知名度与认可度，在竞争日益激烈的知识产权业务市场收获更好的口碑与更高的市场份额。
“华进知识产权的品牌宣传围绕‘专业’展开，例如通过建立标杆案例与经典案件包装打磨制度提升品牌知名度与口碑；形成以案件简报为基础的市场化律所内容输出制度，定期举办论坛、会议、沙龙等活动，加强专业形象展示推广。”
- 黎叶，华进律师事务所
华进的黎叶律师告诉ALB，华进知识产权的品牌宣传围绕“专业”展开，例如通过建立标杆案例与经典案件包装打磨制度提升品牌知名度与口碑；形成以案件简报为基础的市场化律所内容输出制度，定期举办论坛、会议、沙龙等活动，加强专业形象展示推广。
此外，在华进特别注重开拓的东部沿海市场，律所还建立了大客户顾问中心，“配备法律与市场复合背景人才，专注为东部沿海地区品牌企业、科创企业提供商业性解决方案”。
“知识产权团队提升市场认可度的核心在于做好自身质量控制。我们从品牌策略建议，到具体商标授权确权申请、知产维权诉讼、合同审查，都由合伙人或资深律师全程带领团队进行，严格把握服务质量，因此获得了客户的高度认可。”
- 李晓红，北京市正见永申律师事务所
在正见永申的李晓红律师看来，知识产权团队提升市场认可度的核心“还是在于做好自身质量控制。我们从品牌策略建议，到具体商标授权确权申请、知产维权诉讼、合同审查，都由合伙人或资深律师全程带领团队进行，严格把握服务质量，也正因如此，获得了客户的高度认可”。
提升品牌认可度的另一个关键则在于不断强化人才的培养和招纳。李晓红律师告诉ALB，正见永申“绝大多数律师出自国内外顶尖法学院，同时吸纳了原法院、审查机关的优秀人才，从而保障了我们的专业化、精深化”。
吸纳优才无疑也是汇业知识产权团队借以实现品牌提升的途径。王志勇律师说，过去几年汇业开展“2049优才计划”，尤其在2021年引进了三拨知识产权业务团队，包括年初由他本人携20余人的知产团队加入汇业北京办公室；苏和秦、甄书琦、梁思思、吴聪美四位律师携团队加入汇业上海办公室；以及黄琮律师携团队加入汇业上海临港办公室。“如今汇业知产团队总人数已经超过一百人……疫情期间业务受防控政策影响较大，而汇业知识产权业务却逆势发展，就倚仗于我们提前布局、统筹安排。”王律师说。
下一步计划
作为中国知识产权业务领域的领先者，上榜机构又如何预判该领域未来发展趋势，并如何规划自身发展策略？
对于未来，中国贸促会专利商标事务所龙传红所长持乐观的态度：“中国的知识产权环境会进一步完善，市场主体会进一步重视知识产权的布局和维权，专利和商标申请量会进一步上升，相关的诉讼和争议解决会进一步涌现，尤其在产业发展的热点领域。”具体到近期，“受新冠疫情影响，预期生物医药方面的专利许可、谈判和专利纠纷会是知识产权服务的热点之一”。
“未来1-2年，一方面经济下行压力加大，另一方面热点赛道依然会保持活力，同时法律服务行业的变革和洗牌会更加深入。”道可特的林蔚律师则做出此种观察，“在此背景下，中国知识产权服务会呈现几个特点：活跃客户会集中在国产平替制造业和消费业、新能源上下游全产业链、生命健康产业，以及新技术形态下的社交和娱乐业，这些客户对于知识产权律师的需求加大，但要求更高，需要深刻理解法律、技术、商业，还要旁通竞争法和合规业务”。
此外，“在部分存量竞争行业，客户与竞争对手的知识产权争议会增加；在快速发展赛道中，客户与资本之间关于知识产权尽职调查和货币化的需求也会增加。”林律师说。最后，基于近期中国提出构建全国统一大市场，“客户包括知识产权在内的需求会随着大市场的构建延伸至中国主要经济带，要求律所可以输出全国性一站式服务”。
“未来，活跃客户会集中在国产平替制造业和消费业、新能源上下游全产业链、生命健康产业，以及新技术形态下的社交和娱乐业，这些客户对于知识产权律师的要求更高，需要深刻理解法律、技术、商业，还要旁通竞争法和合规业务”。
- 林蔚，北京市道可特律师事务所
知识产权业务的另一个热点将是涉外服务。龙传红所长指出：“随着经济全球化和中国科技的进一步发展，涉外知识产权纠纷仍会保持增多趋势，这也为知识产权服务行业的国际化提供了良好机会。”
紫藤的文明律师对此深有体会。“紫藤每年处理的涉外诉讼案件数量正在快速提升。”他说，“我们常开玩笑说：一家企业不遭遇海外知产诉讼，就证明市场做得不够好；当企业频繁遭遇海外诉讼，才证明产品竞争力上去了。”他告诉ALB，目前紫藤已经在美国华盛顿设立分支机构，德国、瑞士的办事机构也在设立中，以便更好地服务于中国企业的海外知识产权需求。应对诉讼之外，“紫藤也在帮助客户逐步建立海外风险预判能力”。
谈及未来，汇业知识产权团队将在“专业+行业”两个方向精进，“我们会在互联网、通讯、医药及医疗器械、快消品等重点行业深耕，”王志勇律师说，“同时积极探索知识产权新的增长点，例如我们和某大型全国性保险公司合作推出了知识产权保险业务，目前已经有客户成功投保。”
通商知识产权团队的未来发展则将从业务、人员、专业化三个角度展开。“我们会进一步拓展业务规模，细化专业服务领域，并在各个细分领域加强人才储备。在人员关系上，我们会进一步促进合伙人与律师之间的协作关系，并完善团队的知识传承体系。”巩靖律师说。
“未来，通商将继续依托TMT、医药等优势领域，以各地分所为辐射节点，在业务领域和区域进行拓展，为更多科技企业提供综合的知识产权法律服务。”巩律师说。
2022 ALB China IP Rankings
By the end of 2021, China had 3.597 million valid invention patents and 37.24 million registered trademarks, and the number of valid invention patents held by high-tech enterprises accounted for 63.6 percent of the total number held by all Chinese enterprises. As the Chinese government has made it a national policy to "build a powerhouse with intellectual property rights,” the country's IP field is expected to develop even more rapidly. The winning firms in this year's ALB China IP rankings are undoubtedly helping to show the way forward.
In 2021, the Guidelines for Building a Powerful Country with Intellectual Property Rights (2021–2035) and the National Plan for Protection and Application of Intellectual Property Rights During the 14th Five-Year Plan Period were issued. The former provides an outline for how the country's IP field will develop in the next 15 years, while the latter establishes some concrete goals and plans for the next five years.
In addition to the two documents, the past year also witnessed many positives in China's IP field: The official implementation of the new Patent Law and Copyright Law, the improved efficiency in patent and trademark registration examination, and China's continued participation in global IPR governance, to name a few. These facts have underpinned the rapid growth of the winning IP firms and are also mirrored in the achievements they made over the past year.
CHANGING DEMANDS
China's economic transformation and the profound implications of the pandemic have driven rapid changes in business trends as well as in regulations and policies. These changes in turn affect the IP demand of Chinese and foreign companies in China. This is felt keenly by the winning firms.
"With the increasingly strong IP protection and the constantly improved legislative, judicial and administrative environments in China, more and more market entities have begun to give importance to their IP planning and IP protection actions."
- Long Chuanhong, CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office
"With the increasingly strong IP protection and the constantly improved legislative, judicial and administrative environments in China, more and more market entities have begun to give importance to their IP planning and IP protection actions," says Long Chuanhong, president of CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office.
"Enterprises now have a stronger willingness to protect their rights. They hope to sharpen their competitive edge through acquired IP rights. Moreover, their awareness toward IP risks has increased a lot, which means they would analyze and assess IP-related legal risks."
- Chen Mingtao, Commerce & Finance Law Offices
Chen Mingtao from Commerce & Finance Law Offices agrees. "Enterprises now have a stronger willingness to protect their rights. They no longer settle for 'rights on paper,’” he says. “Instead, they hope to sharpen their competitive edge through acquired IP rights. Moreover, their awareness toward IP risks has increased a lot, which means they would analyze and assess IP-related legal risks."
"In 2021, due to the pandemic and variations in government policies, the IP service market experienced a temporary period of correction. However, we can still feel the thriving atmosphere of the IP service industry," notes Wen Ming, vice-president of Purplevine IP Group.
"The IP department of an enterprise was originally a cost center. With enterprises' increased demand for profits and the implementation of incentive policies, a growing number of enterprises are expecting to create value from their years' accumulation of IP."
- Wen Ming, Purplevine IP Group
In his opinion, this is mainly driven by the changes in the way innovative Chinese enterprises work on IP. "The IP department of an enterprise was originally a cost center. With enterprises' increased demand for profits and the implementation of incentive policies, a growing number of enterprises are expecting to create value from their years' accumulation of IP," Wen explains.
In response to this change, Purplevine IP is transforming its service pattern. The change can be divided into the following three parts. "First, in terms of patent applications, clients are shifting their focus from quantity to quality, so they would hire IP firms to conduct patent-related competitive analysis and planning. Second, to control risks, clients are more proactive in protecting their IP rights. Finally, clients have begun to pay attention to the global IP market."
According to Long, against the backdrop of such a transformation and looking at industry sectors and IP fields with strong demand for legal services in the past year, there has been an increase in the number of disputes over invention patents in new fields and new business forms. "In addition to pharmaceuticals and communications, there have been more and more patent litigation cases in the Internet, big data, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, block chain, new energy and other emerging technology fields."
In the past year, the IP team of Hui Ye Law Firm served clients from various fields, including the consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, and the Internet. Wang Zhiyong, head of Hui Ye's Beijing office, says that with the introduction of legal amendments and judicial interpretations, the demand for IP protection from these clients has become different in several ways.
"IP rights holders are more concerned about punitive damages. 2021 is the first year of China's legislation on data security and personal information protection. With the help of Hui Ye, many Internet giants have started working quite early to respond to this change."
- Wang Zhiyong, Hui Ye Law Firm
"For example, IP rights holders are more concerned about punitive damages," he says. "2021 is the first year of China's legislation on data security and personal information protection. With the help of Hui Ye, many Internet giants and large FMCG companies have started working quite early to respond to this change."
Meanwhile, the IP team of ZY Partners specializes in serving clients in the consumer goods, healthcare, and finance industries. Li Xiaohong, partner at the firm, points out that most of these clients came to them last year for services in trademark protection, fights and rights protection against malicious entities, and IP contract review. The team also encountered lots of new situations when serving clients.
According to Li Ye, managing partner of Advance Law Firm, industries that showed significant growth in demand for IP services in the past year include consumer goods such as beverages and liquor, home and commercial decoration, communication devices, personal healthcare products, medical devices, among others.
ADOPTING NEW STRATEGIES
In addition to identifying market demand and providing services, the winning firms are also constantly optimizing their internal strategies to drive growth in their IP business.
In 2022, Beijing Docvit Law Firm merged with Dare & Sure Law Firm, Dachi Law Firm, and Origintelligence. "Dare & Sure, Dachi, and Origintelligence are all experts in the IP field, each having their own strengths. After integration, the new Docvit IP team combines the advantages of the three firms and has expanded to a size with nearly 30 partners. In the future, we will continue to compete for clients in four industries: the Internet, semiconductors, healthcare, and new energy," says Lin Wei, senior partner of Docvit and co-director of the management committee of Docvit Beijing Office.
The IP team of Commerce & Finance Law Offices, an early pioneer in providing IP services, has represented many high-profile IP cases. The past few years have seen a growing demand for IP services in capital markets and transactions such as mergers and acquisitions, in which Commerce & Finance is a leader in the practice of law. The firm therefore combined advantages in the two areas and opened up more opportunities for its IP business.
"We have provided in-depth patent due diligence for clients in various investment and financing activities, including analysis of patent ownership dispute risk, analysis of patent stability, and analysis of FTO risk. We have also participated in a number of IP rights fights against pre-IPO companies," shares Chen Jing from Commerce & Finance Law Offices. "Last year, with enterprises' better understanding of rules for listing in the STAR Market and the establishment of the Beijing Stock Exchange, patents are of increasing importance in the overall IP planning of enterprises. This has driven up enterprises' demand for fostering and developing high-value patents."
COMBINATION OF BUSINESS AND LAW
Over the past few years, the trend toward legal service specialization has given rise to many legal experts specializing in specific industries. IP is a specialty that integrates industrial knowledge, business model and legal thinking, which also calls for professionals who have both "law and business" competence to deliver more comprehensive and creative services for clients.
"IP is an interdisciplinary field, which integrates law and business, natural science and social science. To provide our clients with more comprehensive services, the first thing our IP team needs to do is to understand our clients: their industry background, business model, competitive environment, and even core technologies," shares Gong Jing from Commerce & Finance Law Offices.
According to Long, "The combination of law and business is a growing trend in the IP field. It requires the IP service industry to provide more comprehensive services." Therefore, the Patent and Trademark Law Office strives to provide one-stop services for clients.
Covering the entire value chain of IP is also a key part of Purplevine IP's business strategy. "When I joined Purplevine IP in early 2019, the company had only 8 employees, and now it has more than 600," says Wen. "Our service covers virtually every part across the entire chain, including IP application, litigation, licensing, dispute resolution, transaction operations, and analysis and consultation, which differentiates us from our competitors."
Another differentiator of Purplevine IP is that it "comes from industries and works for industries.” Wen says that some of Purplevine IP's staff used to serve as heads of the legal or IP departments of well-known domestic and foreign companies, and "this allows us to think from our clients' point of view."
Docvit answers clients' increasing demand for IP services by building legal service products. "We divide our services into standard, non-standard and innovative services. We create mature products and work flows for standard ones. For non-standard ones, we meet clients' customized needs on the premise of ensuring quality and standards. For innovative services, we build future-proof products through a dedicated R&D team," says the firm.
In the past year, Hui Ye's IP team participated in many cross-border IP cooperation projects. The projects involved multiple jurisdictions and industries, while requiring the team to have a deep understanding of laws and business models. Wang says that "as there is a growing demand for IP protection in cross-border e-commerce, and IP-related legal services are increasingly needed by large multinational companies to protect their IP in China and by Chinese high-tech enterprises to go global,” this 50-plus-strong multi-disciplinary team is poised to gain even greater growth.
BOOSTING BRAND VISIBILITY
In addition to developing internal capabilities, the winning firms also explored ways to enhance brand awareness and recognition, and gain a better reputation and a higher market share in the increasingly competitive IP market.
"Advance's efforts on the intellectual property brand publicity revolve around professionalism and specialization. It has also established a key client counseling center in the eastern coastal market, a market the firm has paid particular attention to.”
- Li Ye, Advance Law Firm
Li Ye of Advance says that Advance's efforts on IP brand publicity revolve around "professionalism and specialization.” For instance, the firm develops benchmarking and leading cases as publicity tools to enhance brand awareness. Besides, it also uses case briefings, regular forums, conferences, seminars and other activities to consolidate its image as a leading legal service provider. In addition, Advance has established a key client counseling center in the eastern coastal market, a market the firm has paid particular attention to.
“The key to an intellectual property team's success in enhancing its market recognition is good quality control. Our team is led by partners or senior lawyers in every step in the provision of services, which has been highly recognized by our clients."
- Li Xiaohong, ZY Partners
In the opinion of Li Xiaohong of ZY Partners, the key to an IP team's success in enhancing its market recognition is "good quality control. Our team is led by partners or senior lawyers in every step in the provision of services, which has been highly recognized by our clients."
A team of high-quality talent is admittedly what allows Hui Ye's IP team to keep enhancing its brand. Wang shares that Hui Ye introduced three IP teams in 2021. "Now we have more than 100 members on our IP team. With the business during the pandemic affected by the prevention and control policy, Hui Ye's IP services can still grow, which owes to the early steps we took."
NEXT STEPS
As leaders in China's IP field, how do the winning firms anticipate the future of this field and what are their future strategies?
Long of CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office is optimistic about the future. "China's IP environment will be further improved, and market entities will attach greater importance to IP planning and IP rights protection. The number of patent and trademark applications will continue to rise, and there will be a surge in litigation and dispute resolution cases, especially in the most focused areas of industrial development."
"In the next 1–2 years, most active clients will come from the domestic manufacturing and consumption industries, the industry chain spanning the upstream and downstream of new energy, healthcare industries as well as the social and entertainment."
- Lin Wei, Docvit
"In the next 1–2 years, the downward pressure on the economy will increase, while the hot areas will remain vibrant; at the same time, the reform and reshuffle of the legal service industry will be even more drastic," predicts Lin of Docvit. "In this context, China's IP services will show several characteristics. Most active clients will come from the domestic manufacturing and consumption industries, the industry chain spanning the upstream and downstream of new energy, healthcare industries as well as the social and entertainment industries in the form of new technologies. These clients will have an increased demand for IP lawyers, but they will raise the bar. Lawyers should have a deep understanding of law, technology, and business and familiarize themselves with competition law and compliance services."
What's more, based on China's recent proposal to build a unified national market, "the demand of clients, including that for IP, will extend to China's major economic belts as this market is being built. This requires law firms to deliver one-stop services on a country-wide scale."
Another hot spot for IP services is international services. Wen of Purplevine IP has personal experience of this. "The number of international litigation cases handled per year by Purplevine IP is increasing rapidly," he says. Purplevine IP has set up a branch in Washington DC, and is establishing offices in Germany and Switzerland to better serve the overseas intellectual property needs of Chinese enterprises. In addition to litigation, "Purplevine IP is also helping clients develop the capability of predicting overseas risks."
In the future, Hui Ye's IP team will make progress from two perspectives: specialty plus industry. "We will focus on key industries such as the Internet, communications, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and FMCG," says Wang. "Meanwhile, we will continue to explore new growth engines in the IP field. For instance, we have launched an IP insurance plan in cooperation with a large national insurance company, and some clients have been insured through this plan."
The future growth of Commerce & Finance's IP team will be achieved from services, personnel and specialization. "We will further expand our service scale, refine our service fields, and strengthen our talent pool in each field," says Gong. "In the future, Commerce & Finance will continue to capitalize on our advantages in TMT, pharmaceuticals and other fields and operate through our local branches to deliver a complete set of IP legal services to more tech companies."
THE LIST
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China Domestic Firms 中国本土律所 |
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Patents 专利 |
Patents 专利 |
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CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office China Patent Agent (HK) Ltd. JunHe LLP King & Wood Mallesons Lifang & Partners Zhong Lun Law Firm |
AllBright Law Offices DeHeng Law Offices Global Law Office Han Kun Law Offices Long An Law Firm Wanhuida Intellectual Property Watson & Band |
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Patents 专利 |
Patents 专利 |
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An Jie Law Firm Anli Partners Chang Tsi & Partners East & Concord Partners FenXun Partners Gen Law Firm Guantao Law Firm Haiwen & Partners Hiways Law Firm Hui Ye Law Firm Tian Yuan Law Firm |
Beijing DHH Law Firm Beijing Docvit Law Firm Co-effort Law Firm Dentons China Duan & Duan Law Firm Grandall Law Firm Jingtian & Gongcheng Purplevine IP Group Tahota Law Firm Yuanda China Law Offices |
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Patents 专利 |
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Advance Law Firm Bridgeon Law Firm Broad & Bright Law Firm Commerce & Finance Law Offices HengDu Law Firm IP March Lung Tin IP Attorneys Lusheng Law Firm Merits and Tree Law Offices T&C Law Firm |
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China Domestic Firms 中国本土律所 |
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Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
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CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office Global Law Office JunHe LLP King & Wood Mallesons Lifang & Partners Wanhuida Intellectual Property Zhong Lun Law Firm |
AllBright Law Offices An, Tian, Zhang & Partners Chang Tsi & Partners Co-effort Law Firm DeHeng Law Offices Dentons China Haiwen & Partners Hiways Law Firm Hui Ye Law Firm Lusheng Law Firm Ronly & Tenwen Partners Tian Yuan Law Firm TianTai Law Firm Watson & Band |
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Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
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An Jie Law Firm Anli Partners Beijing TA Law Firm Boss & Young Attorneys-At-Law DaHui Lawyers East & Concord Partners Han Kun Law Offices Jingtian & Gongcheng JunZeJun Law Offices Kangda Law Firm Landing Law Offices Llinks Law Offices Long An Law Firm Merits and Tree Law Offices Tahota Law Firm ZY Partners |
Beijing Docvit Law Firm FenXun Partners Gen Law Firm Grandall Law Firm HongFangLaw King & Capital Law Firm Lung Tin IP Attorneys Sunhold Law Firm |
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China International Firms 在中国的国际律所 |
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Patents 专利 |
Patents 专利 |
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Allen & Overy Baker & McKenzie Bird & Bird CMS Covington & Burling Deacons DLA Piper Eversheds Sutherland Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner Hogan Lovells Jones Day Mayer Brown Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Morrison & Foerster Norton Rose Fulbright Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Perkins Coie Ropes & Gray Rouse Consultancy Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton Steptoe & Johnson |
Clifford Chance Dechert Dorsey & Whitney ELLALAN Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Lee & Ko MinterEllison Marks & Clerk MMLC Group Nishimura & Asahi OLN IP Services Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Ribeiro Hui SIPS Simmons & Simmons Shin & Kim Shusako Yamamoto Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Spruson & Ferguson Squire Patton Boggs Stephenson Harwood TMI Associates Vivien Chan & Co Wilkinson & Grist |
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China International Firms 在中国的国际律所 |
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Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
Copyright/Trademark 著作权/商标 |
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Baker & McKenzie Bird & Bird CMS Deacons DLA Piper Dorsey & Whitney ELLALAN Eversheds Sutherland Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Hogan Lovells Mayer Brown MinterEllison MMLC Group Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Nishimura & Asahi OLN IP Services Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Perkins Coie Ribeiro Hui Ropes & Gray Rouse Consultancy Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton SIPS Stephenson Harwood Wilkinson & Grist Vivien Chan & Co |
Allen & Overy Clifford Chance Dechert Eiger Jones Day Lee & Ko Marks & Clerk Norton Rose Fulbright Spruson & Ferguson Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Shin & Kim Shusako Yamamoto Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Simmons & Simmons Squire Patton Boggs TMI Associates |