Legislative Implementation of Flexibilities - Japan

Title:	Articles 101, 196 and 196-2 of the Patent Act, Act No. 121 of 1959 as amended up to Act No. 63 of 2011)
Field of IP:	Patents
Type of flexibility:	Criminal sanctions for patent infringement
Summary table:

Provisions of Law

(Acts Deemed to constitute infringement) Article 101

The following acts shall be deemed to constitute infringement of a patent right or an exclusive license:

(i) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a product, acts of producing, assigning, etc., importing or offering for assignment, etc. any product to be used exclusively for the producing of the said product as a business;

(ii) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a product, acts of producing, assigning, etc., importing or offering for assignment, etc. any product (excluding those widely distributed within Japan) to be used for the producing of the said product and indispensable for the resolution of the problem by the said invention as a business, knowing that the said invention is a patented invention and the said product is used for the working of the invention;

(iii) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a product, acts of possessing the said product for the purpose of assigning, etc. or exporting it as a business;

(iv) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a process, acts of producing, assigning, etc., importing or offering for assignment, etc. any product to be used exclusively for the use of the said process as a business; and

(v) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a process, acts of producing, assigning, etc., importing or offering for assignment, etc. any product (excluding those widely distributed within Japan) to be used for the use of the said process and indispensable for the resolution of the problem by the said invention, knowing that the said invention is a patented invention and the said product is used for the working of the invention as a business;

(vi) where a patent has been granted for an invention of a process of producing a product, acts of possessing the product produced by the said process for the purpose of assigning, etc. or exporting it as a business.

Article 196 (Crime of infringement)

An infringer of a patent right or exclusive license (excluding one who has committed an act that shall be deemed to constitute infringement of a patent right or an exclusive license under Article 101) shall be punished by imprisonment with work for a term not exceeding ten years or a fine not exceeding 10,000,000 yen or combination thereof.

Article 196-2

Any person who has committed an act that shall be deemed to constitute infringement of a patent right or an exclusive license under Article 101 shall be punished by imprisonment with work for a term not exceeding five years or a fine not exceeding 5,000,000 yen or combination thereof.