PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Susan D. Villanueva, Patricia A. O. Bunye, Rowanie A. Nakan and Ritz Angelica R. Alejandro, Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia
presentation of affidavits, and other necessary evidence. Upon termination of the same, the parties will be required to submit position papers and the case shall be submitted for decision. 5.2 Decision-Makers Cases filed in court are adjudicated by judges. Jurisdiction over such matters lies with the RTCs, designated as special commercial courts. However, not all RTCs are classified as special commercial courts. While there are no judges exclusively dedicated to IP cases, the establishment of special com- mercial courts ensures that cases involving com- plex commercial or technical issues, including IP matters, are heard by judges with expertise. The assignment of cases to the various branches of the RTC is governed by a raffle system, ensuring no external influence or bias. Administrative cases for infringement and can- cellation are decided by the BLA. For cancella- tion cases that involve highly technical issues, the Director of the IPOPHL may order that the petition be heard and decided by a committee as discussed in 3.6 Role of Experts . 5.3 Settling the Case Parties to patent infringement and cancellation suits are required to undergo mandatory media- tion procedures. For criminal actions filed before the court, the parties shall likewise undergo man- datory mediation on the civil aspect of the case. For civil cases, after the pre-trial stage and once the issues have been joined, the court is mandated to refer the parties to court-annexed mediation (CAM), which shall not exceed 30 cal- endar days.
If the judge determines that settlement remains a viable option, the case may be referred to anoth- er court for judicial dispute resolution (JDR). This must be completed within a non-extendable period of 15 calendar days. Should this also fail, the case will proceed to trial before the original court on the dates previously agreed upon. All proceedings conducted during both the CAM and JDR are confidential. For administrative complaints for violation of IP rights and inter partes cases filed before the IPOPHL, parties are also required to undergo mandatory mediation. During the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) conference, parties are briefed on the mediation process, including the option to use the WIPO option for mediation. The IPOPHL likewise offers mediation outside litigation to encourage parties to settle their IP dispute even before filing a case in court or an administrative agency. To avail of the said ser- vice, both parties to the dispute must be willing to undergo mediation. 5.4 Other Court Proceedings For patents, there is no explicit rule that directly addresses the effect of parallel revocation or infringement proceedings, or foreign anti-suit injunctions, on ongoing patent cases, unlike for trade marks where the IP Code specifically states that the filing of a petition to cancel a mark does not constitute a prejudicial question to an infringement action.
6. Remedies 6.1 Remedies for the Patentee
The patentee can recover from the infringer such damages sustained because of the infringement,
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