美國專利侵權訴訟之證據能力與舉證責任

Abstract

摘要 伴隨著知識經濟規模逐年擴大，智慧財產權保護之重要性日益被重視，專利侵權訴訟被使用之頻率日益增加。訴訟之審理中，最主要之元素為證人及證物，證據也是法官建立事實之基礎。我國關於證據之處理及舉證責任之分配，並未以獨立之證據法規範之，而係分別規定在民事訴訟法及刑事訴訟法中，而其中之規定，又相當簡略，常造成適用上見解之分歧，故就我國訴訟之舉證責任分配及舉證程度標準有加以檢討之必要。美國就專利侵權訴訟已發展一段時日，各種判斷標準及訴訟程序中關於證據之處理，實有值得我方參考之處，故本文以美國專利侵權訴訟關於證據能力、證據方法、舉證責任分配及舉證程度標準之相關法律及判決作為介紹，作為省思我國規定及實務操作之參考。 由於美國訴訟制度中，專利侵權訴訟屬於聯邦法院管轄，原則上以聯邦證據法作為準據法。故本文先針對美國關於證據能力之規定為介紹，內容包括證據需具關聯性、證據應非屬傳聞證據、證據需經驗真或辨識及文書須符合原本原則，並整理美國專利侵權訴訟關於證據能力之相關案例，以說明相關規定落實於實務上判決之運用。 再者，本文整理出美國專利侵權訴訟中常用之證據方法、其適用之順序及適用上常見之問題，以期呈現美國專利侵權訴訟進行時更具體化之面貌。另外，本文亦簡要整理專利侵權訴訟中常見之爭點，包括原告權利主張事項，如所有權、侵權、所主張損害賠償數額、故意侵權，及被告之抗辯事項如專利無效、修理、授權或默示授權、不公平行為、懈怠、禁反言、專利濫用，逐一就判決先例對各爭點構成要件之舉證責任分配，及舉證程度之標準為介紹，期能幫助讀者明瞭專利侵權訴訟中兩造通常使用之爭執事項及其舉證責任分配與舉證程度，最後並作成對我國專利侵權訴訟舉證責任之建議。

ABSTRACT

Following the expansion of the scale of the knowledge-based economy, companies now attach great importance to protecting their intellectual property, and patent infringement litigations are happening with increasing frequency. The primary elements that make up a trial are witnesses and exhibits. Evidence is the foundation for the court to construct the facts. There is no independent rule of evidence and the burden of proof in Taiwan, generally governed by the Code of Civil Procedure and the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the rule of evidence are too contradictory, and there are different opinions about the burden of proof between courts from time to time. It is necessary to review the rule of evidence and the standard of burden of proof. Patent infringement litigation in the U. S. A. has been developed for a long time, and there are so many cases about the rule of evidence and the standard of burden of proof as considerable reference materials. This thesis proposes to introduce the rule of evidence and the standard of burden of proof of patent infringement litigation in the U. S. A. as the reference materials when we review the rule of evidence and the standard of burden of proof in Taiwan. The jurisdiction of patent infringement litigation is the federal court. The litigation is governed by the Federal Rule of Evidence. This thesis introduces the competency of evidence, including the topics of Relevance, the Hearsay Rule, Requirement of Authentication or Identification and the Original Writing Rule. This thesis also introduces the precedent about the evidence of patent infringement litigation, attempting to show how the rule applies in real cases. This thesis sums up the evidence that is always used in patent infringement litigation and dears some considerations that arise in connection with the evidence, attempting to show the real situation of patent infringement litigation. Also, this thesis introduces some arguments that often arise in patent infringement litigation, including the issues on which the patent owner bears the burden of proof such as ownership, infringement, the amount of damage and willful infringement, and the issues on which the accused infringer bears the burden of proof such as invalid patents, repair, license and implied license, inequitable conduct, laches, and estoppel. The reader of this thesis will find out the arguments that often arise in patent infringement litigation, the burden of proof of each issue and the standard. Finally, we integrate the above issues and provide some suggestions in the conclusion of this thesis.