KIPO Industrial Property Rights Subcommittee to Oversee Semiconductor Layout Design Review

Expanded Functions and Roles through Legal Amendments
Now Handling Semiconductor Layout Design Dispute Mediation

The role of the Industrial Property Dispute Mediation Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Mediation Committee) under the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) will newly include mediation and deliberation of disputes related to ‘semiconductor layout design.’ This means the functions and roles of the Mediation Committee are being expanded.

KIPO announced that on the 30th, partial amendments to nine laws, including the Act on the Layout Design of Semiconductor Integrated Circuits for the Maintenance of Committees Affiliated with Administrative Agencies, which include this content, were promulgated.

Semiconductor layout design refers to the design that arranges various circuit elements and connecting wires in a planar or three-dimensional manner for manufacturing semiconductor integrated circuits.

The Mediation Committee is currently regarded as the leading institution in the field of industrial property dispute mediation, resolving the largest number of disputes related to industrial property.

Last year, the Mediation Committee received 159 dispute cases, double the number from the previous year (2022), and completed case processing in an average of 66 days. In particular, through mediation between parties, it recorded a 53% mediation success rate, earning a reputation as an institution capable of resolving disputes quickly and efficiently.

Furthermore, starting this year, the Mediation Committee will also handle disputes related to ‘semiconductor layout design rights,’ which is expected to contribute to the smooth resolution of disputes in this field going forward. The existing jurisdiction of the Mediation Committee includes industrial property rights, employee inventions, trade secrets, and unfair competition acts.

Meanwhile, the Mediation Committee has been operating with 80 technical and legal experts, including 28 in the patent field, 19 in the trademark and design fields, and 27 in legal fields such as trade secrets and unfair competition acts.

KIPO plans to appoint up to five additional semiconductor layout design experts as dispute mediation committee members this year, following the expansion of the Mediation Committee’s functions and roles through the legal amendments.

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