专利间接侵权的国际立法动向与中国制度选择

The Trend of International Legislation on Indirect Patent Infringement and China’s Approach

间接侵权是专利立法中最为棘手且存有争议的问题。共同侵权是构建专利间接侵权制度的理论基础,诸如"共同关联性"的本质特征、教唆和帮助的共同侵权形态、间接侵权人与直接侵权人的连带责任等,为早期专利间接侵权案件的处理提供了规范依据和学理支撑。现代专利法的一个重要变革,即实现了从共同侵权规则到间接侵权规则的制度转型。在美国,经历了从判例法到成文法的变迁;在德、日,则是从民法典到专门法的过渡。就主要国家专利法而言,有关间接侵权的立法模式、构成要件以及责任形式不尽相同。在中国,关于专利间接侵权,是恪守传统民法的共同侵权规则,还是创制间接侵权的专利法规则,实务界、学术界有不同看法。总体来说,我国专利法修改,循国际制度变革之势,应本土法治发展之需,有必要构建专门的帮助侵权制度,但应当对其法律构成和责任形式采取相对谨慎的立法立场。

Indirect infringement is the most difficult and controversial issue in patent legislation. Joint infringement is the theoretical basis for the construction of the indirect patent infringement system,such as the essential characteristics of "common relevance",the joint infringement form of abetting and helping,the joint liability of the indirect infringer and the direct infringer,etc.,which provided the normative basis and theoretical support for the handling of indirect patent infringement cases in the past. An important change of modern patent law is to realize the transformation from joint infringement rules to indirect infringement rules. In the United States,it has experienced changes from case law to statute law,and in Germany and Japan,it is a transition from civil code to special law. As far as the patent law of major countries is concerned,the legislative mode,constitutive requirements and liability form of indirect infringement are different. In China,there are different views on whether indirect infringement should abide by the common infringement rules of traditional civil law or create the patent law rules of indirect infringement. Generally speaking,the revision of patent law in China,following the trend of international system reform,should meet the needs of the development of local rule of law. It is necessary to build a special system to helping infringement,but take a relatively cautious legislative position on its legal composition and liability form.