The 2016 International IP Court Conference was hosted on September 7, 2016 at the Patent Court under the theme of the Court, IP and Future.  The International IP Court Conference is a sole international conference that provides discussion forum for chief judges and judges of patent and IP courts from around the world including the IP5 countries.  Marking the second hosting, the Conference invited Chief Judge Ron Clark of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, where majority of patent litigations are filed in the U.S., and many judges with IP expertise from Germany, the U.K., China, Japan and Korea.

Chief Judge LEE Dae-Kyeong of the Korean Patent Court addressed the participants in his opening speech that, “The increasing number of global IP dispute cases and the globalization of IP disputes bring new challenges to IP courts around the world.  This Conference will provide a venue where participants can build common ground on the needs for cooperation and harmonization between IP courts.”

Building onto the last year’s success which was internationally acclaimed for the extensive discussions and excellent organization, the 2016 Conference also provided a forum for in-depth discussions with topics on the practical issues of IP disputes that take place worldwide.

Based on the common grounds accumulated through the first and second conferences, the Korean Judiciary and the Patent Court plans to establish a regular forum for the chief judges of IP courts on a regular basis to share the experiences and visions in each jurisdiction.  It is expected that the Conference and the planned meeting of IP court chief judges from IP5 countries will lay the international foundation to establish an IP Hub Court.