Litigation and Dispute Resolution
Our dispute resolution team consists of international and locally qualified lawyers who are based in jurisdictions throughout Asia. We have developed particularly strong dispute resolution teams in China and Hong Kong in the areas of intellectual property theft litigation and trade disputes. We have assisted various Canadian and other international brands recover from being victims of trademark squatting and patent and copyright infringement.
We also commonly assist with a wide range of corporate, commercial and labor and employment related disputes. Our expertise covers a broad range of areas, including investment, finance, securities, sales contracts, products liability, competition law and labor law.
Litigation or dispute settlement is often a necessary part of commercial legal work. Over the years, our partners have been involved in a great variety of legal disputes, some of which have been settled quickly after a demand letter is written, and some of which have taken years of litigation to resolve. Our professionals have regularly appeared before courts and tribunals in various jurisdictions and the type of cases which we have handled most frequently include the following:
- Litigation over intellectual property rights
- Claims for damages for breach of contract, non-payment of sums due or failure to perform in accordance with a contract
- Corporate fraud and corruption
- Disputes between shareholders and joint venture partners
- Employment and Labor disputes and wrongful dismissal cases
- International litigation and arbitration
- Litigation between securities companies and their clients over stock losses
- Debt collection claims
Our intellectual property lawyers specialize in assisting victims of intellectual property theft by providing the following services:
- Trademark enforcement, opposition, cancellation and defensive registrations
- Trademark, patent and copyright use investigations
- Evidence preservation
- Trademark office and customs complaint filing
- Drafting cease & desist letters
- Unfair competition lawsuits
- Administrative enforcement of intellectual property rights
- Intellectual property enforcement and infringement cases
- Trade secrets and unfair competition cases
Rights holders often seek redress for trademark infringement through administrative adjudication because the corrective measures that are ordered by an administrative tribunal can occur shortly after a complaint is filed. Corrective measures that may be taken by administrative tribunals and government agencies include:
- The issuance of cease and desist orders
- Investigations and raids
- The imposition of fines
- Revocation of a business license
- Suspension of manufacturing
- Seizure and destruction of raw and semi-processed materials, manufacturing devices and equipment, packaging and finished counterfeit products
- The closure of wholesale markets that typically provide a venue for the sale of counterfeit goods
If our client is dissatisfied with a decision rendered by customs or an administrative department, they may file a lawsuit.
For serious cases of infringement in some countries criminal prosecution may ensue. Our team of experienced litigators are readily available to help our clients recover their intellectual property and seek other appropriate remedies.