Patent Attorneys Association Files Complaint Against Prior Art Investigation Company CEO for Bribing Patent Office Official

The Korean Patent Attorneys Association has reported two current and former representatives of two prior art search firms who bribed Patent Office officials to the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office.

According to the Patent Attorneys Association on the 17th, these representatives are accused of providing bribes such as golf entertainment, requests for hiring their children, and gift certificates to a senior Patent Office official, Mr. A, who is in charge of prior art search work.

Earlier, the Board of Audit and Inspection announced the results of a 'Public Official Corruption Mobile Inspection' last month, stating that Mr. A received bribes and entertainment from prior art search firms in exchange for funneling work to specific companies.

Based on the inspection results, the Board of Audit and Inspection requested the Patent Office to dismiss the official and referred the case to the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office for investigation.

Hong Jang-won, president of the Patent Attorneys Association, said, "The Mr. A case is an example where inappropriate practices between the Patent Office and prior art search firms have come to light," adding, "This should serve as an opportunity to crack down on illegal activities by prior art search firms and normalize the intellectual property legal services market to protect consumer interests."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.