Recently, the Supreme People's Court rendered a ruling on the retrial application filed by the retrial applicant, Funeng Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Funeng Group"), against the respondent, the National Intellectual Property Administration, and the third party, Funeng Technology (Ganzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Funeng Technology"), in an administrative dispute over trademark invalidation. The court ruled not to grant retrial and dismissed Funeng Group's retrial application.

In the ruling, the Supreme People's Court held that the mark "Funeng" is a coined term with strong distinctiveness. Evidence submitted by Funeng Technology showed that the use of "Funeng Technology" on goods such as automotive power lithium-ion batteries predated the filing date of the disputed trademark. As a competitor in the same industry, Funeng Group was aware of Funeng Technology's "Funeng" mark and should have avoided using it when applying for trademark registration. However, Funeng Group applied for registration of more than 60 trademarks including "Funeng", "Funeng Battery", "Funeng Smart Mobility" and the disputed trademark in various classes of goods and services. The evidence provided by Funeng Group was insufficient to prove genuine use of the disputed trademark. Therefore, Funeng Group's acts exceeded the scope of normal production and business needs. The second-instance judgment correctly found that the registration of the disputed trademark constituted "registration obtained by other unfair means" as referred to in the first paragraph of Article 44 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China (2013 Revision). The reasons for Funeng Group's retrial application were not established. Founded in 2009, Funeng Technology (Ganzhou) Co., Ltd. mainly produces cells, modules and battery packs of ternary soft-pack power batteries. It is the largest soft-pack battery manufacturer in China and a national leader in ternary soft-pack technology.

Beijing Caihe Law Firm was entrusted by Funeng Technology (Ganzhou) Co., Ltd. to act as its agent in the administrative proceedings of trademark invalidation and the court litigation proceedings.