In 2011, Shandong Hongjitang Ejiao Co., Ltd. (“Hongjitang Ejiao”) lost the battle on trademark infringement and unfair competition brought by Shandong Hongjitang Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. at the trial of first instance. The court’s ruling, which said that “Hongjitang” as an enterprise name shall not be used by the ejiao (donkey-hide gelatin) producer any more on its products, came as a fatal blow to Hongjitang Ejiao.
At the end of 2012, senior partner Qi Zhi and attorney Yang Shulong from Dacheng’s Jinan office were retained to represent Hongjitang Ejiao at the trial of second instance. After sorting out the history of the time-honored brand “Hongjitang”, the attorneys pointed out that inheritors of the brand should “co-exist in goodwill and show tolerance for each other”. This strong argument, coupled with the attorneys’ rich litigation experience and IP law expertise, successfully convinced the court of second instance to adopt their opinion and revoke the first instance decision.
Qi and Yang won high praise from the client. On July 23, the Supreme Court announced that the case was selected as one of the representative IP cases that has to do with China’s time-honored brands. The advocacy of co-existence in goodwill and tolerance for each other among inheritors has an exemplary effect on many Chinese time-honored brands.
To find more about the Supreme Court announcement, please click:http://www.chinapeace.org.cn/2014-07/24/content_11128309.htm
Beijing Dacheng Law Offices, LLP ("大成") is an independent law firm, and not a member or affiliate of Dentons. 大成 is a partnership law firm organized under the laws of the People’s Republic of China, and is Dentons' Preferred Law Firm in China, with offices in more than 50 locations throughout China. Dentons Group (a Swiss Verein) ("Dentons") is a separate international law firm with members and affiliates in more than 160 locations around the world, including Hong Kong SAR, China. For more information, please see dacheng.com/legal-notices or dentons.com/legal-notices.