AMSC, a global solutions provider serving the wind and power grid industry, has announced that China’s Supreme People’s Court has scheduled a hearing for May 29, 2013 to review the jurisdiction of AMSC’s software copyright infringement cases against Sinovel Wind Group Co, Ltd (Sinovel) and Guotong Electric.
During the proceedings, the court is expected to review the jurisdiction of AMSC’s civil action filed against Sinovel in the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court as well as AMSC’s civil action filed against Sinovel and Guotong Electric in the Hainan Province No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court. These are two of the four legal cases that AMSC brought against Sinovel in late 2011 regarding Sinovel’s contractual breaches and AMSC’s discovery of intellectual property theft by Sinovel. AMSC is also engaged in a commercial arbitration case and a trade secrets case against Sinovel in China.
In September 2011, AMSC filed a civil action with the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court that alleges Sinovel’s unauthorized copying and use of portions of AMSC’s wind turbine control software developed for Sinovel’s 1.5 MW wind turbines and the binary code, or upper layer, of AMSC’s software for its PM3000 power converters. In this case, AMSC is seeking a cease and desist order and damages totaling US$6 million.
In November 2011, Sinovel filed a motion to remove this case from the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court and transfer the matter to the Beijing Arbitration Commission. The court denied Sinovel’s motion to remove the case. Sinovel filed an appeal of that decision to the Beijing Higher People’s Court, and the Beijing Higher People’s Court supported the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court’s ruling and rejected Sinovel’s appeal. Sinovel then filed an appeal of that decision with China’s Supreme People’s Court.
In September 2011, AMSC also filed a copyright case against Sinovel and Guotong Electric with the Hainan Province No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court. In this case, AMSC is seeking a cease and desist order as well as damages totaling approximately US$200,000, making this the smallest of AMSC’s legal actions against Sinovel. In this case, Sinovel filed a jurisdiction opposition motion in December 2011 requesting that the Hainan Province No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court dismiss AMSC’s case against Sinovel, saying the case should be governed by the Beijing Arbitration Commission pursuant to the terms of component contracts between AMSC and Sinovel. Not only did the court grant Sinovel’s motion, but also it dismissed the cases against both Sinovel and Guotong. AMSC appealed the dismissal to the Hainan Higher Court, which on April 5, 2012 upheld the decision of the Hainan Province No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court. AMSC then filed an appeal of that decision with China’s Supreme People’s Court.
“President Xi Jinping recently said that China will protect legitimate rights of foreign enterprises. AMSC’s cases against Sinovel are the perfect litmus test for whether statements like these are rhetoric or reality. They will help to determine whether China will protect the intellectual property rights of all companies – both foreign and domestic,” said John Powell, Vice President and General Counsel, AMSC .
[mappress]
Press release, May 26, 2013; Image: rivertoncity