On April 14, 2015, Chief Judge Ryuichi Shitara of the Intellectual Property High Court visited the Patents Court of the Chancery Division of the High Court of England and Wales, and had a discussion with the Hon. Mr. Justice Richard Arnold and Hon. Mr. Justice Colin Birss.
The Patents Court of the Chancery Division is the court of first instance for patent claims with high value. Both judges also hear a broad range of intellectual property rights litigation cases other than patent cases in the Chancery Division and specialize in intellectual property cases. Both judges responded to Chief Judge Shitara’s questions with great detail about the evidence collection procedures in English courts, how judges understand technology, and how claim construction and the doctrine of equivalents are dealt with, as well as the methodology for determining inventive step in the defense of invalidity.