The Korean Patent Attorneys Association welcomed the introduction of the 'partial amendment to the Patent Attorneys Act' in a statement on the 18th, which prohibits the documentation of industrial property valuation and agency work by unqualified individuals.
Article 2 of the current Patent Attorneys Act defines the duties of patent attorneys as representing matters related to industrial property rights, such as patents, and performing valuations and other activities related to those matters as a profession. This is because having an unqualified person represent industrial property rights cases can harm the interests of the parties and stakeholders.
However, the current Patent Attorneys Act lacks punitive provisions regarding the valuation of industrial property by unqualified individuals, and there are insufficient clear standards for agency work involving industrial property rights. The Patent Attorneys Association noted, "Valuation of industrial property rights is a legal judgment that significantly affects rights enforcement and infringement disputes, yet many cases have occurred where unqualified individuals lacking professional knowledge carry out these valuations, resulting in losses for the general public and small and medium enterprises (SME)."
The amendment proposed by Representative Kim Jong-min on this day stipulates the scope of industrial property valuation as "legal judgments regarding the occurrence, change, extinction, and scope of effectiveness of industrial property rights" and prohibits anyone other than a patent attorney from performing such work. It defines the preparation of documents necessary for agency work in industrial property rights, such as applications, opinions, and amendments, as tasks for patent attorneys, thereby banning illegal patent activities by unqualified individuals.
The Patent Attorneys Association expressed strong support for the National Assembly's introduction of the Patent Attorneys Act amendment and urged the swift passage of the amendment to create an environment where our corporations and citizens can confidently receive quality patent services.