Recently, in a landmark patent invalidation case represented by Liu Shen team for an internationally renowned semiconductor materials company, the Patent Reexamination Board of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) rendered its decision. The patent right was maintained in force on the basis of the amended claims submitted by the patentee to rectify procedural formalities.

As competition intensifies in semiconductor technology applications, especially within the chip sector, high-end manufacturing related to chip technology has become a fiercely contested core arena among market players. The patent in question is the client’s core asset in this technical field, which faced an anonymous invalidation challenge from a competitor seeking to undermine the client’s leading market position. The ruling strongly upholds the client’s core intellectual property rights in the high-end manufacturing sector related to chip technologies.

Legally, the key dispute centered on whether the prior art provided technical motivation to solve the technical problem addressed by the patent in suit. Through in-depth analysis of reference documents, the Liu Shen team identified a solid breakthrough from the perspectives of technical field and functional mechanism. The case also posed substantial challenges due to highly sophisticated technical subject matters, making it difficult to clarify and sort out complex technical facts. Leveraging profound technical expertise, the Liu Shen team clearly elaborated all technical facts concerning the patent and comparative documents to the panel during the oral hearing in a concise and readily comprehensible manner, laying a solid foundation for the final favorable outcome. With rigorous legal argumentation and professional technical support throughout the invalidation proceeding, the team effectively established the inventiveness of the patent. The CNIPA Reexamination and Invalidation Department fully adopted the arguments presented by Liu Shen and upheld the validity of all amended claims.

The decision fully recognizes the innovative value and legal stability of the patent in suit. Liu Shen has provided solid legal protection for the client’s market position and commercial interests in this critical technical field.

The legal team handling the case includes SONG Li, ZHAN Chengbin, JIN Nican and YANG Yan.