MOIP Issues Guidance on Patent Filing for AI-Assisted Inventions: Substantial Human Contribution Required
In June 2026, the Ministry of Intellectual Property (MOIP) published the Guide to Proper Patent Filing in the Age of Artificial Intelligence (AI) (the “Guide”), reaffirming the principle that inventions developed with the assistance of AI may be eligible for patent protection only where a human has made a substantial contribution to the inventive process. The Guide was issued in response to the growing number of patent applications involving AI-assisted inventions, driven by the increasing use of generative AI in research and development. It outlines key considerations and patentability requirements for filing patent applications involving AI-assisted inventions. For foreign companies utilizing AI in their research and development activities, the Guide provides a useful opportunity to review their internal practices for managing inventions and preparing patent applications in Korea.
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IPTAB Expands Remote Participation in Oral Hearings, Including for Overseas Parties
The Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board (IPTAB) of the Ministry of Intellectual Property (MOIP) fully implemented online oral hearings in July 2026. Accordingly, parties to trial proceedings, including overseas parties, can now participate in oral hearings remotely from any location with internet access, without having to travel to Korea. This is expected to reduce the time and costs associated with travel.
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Lee International Secures Favorable IPTAB Decision in Semiconductor Patent Cancellation Proceedings Involving New Prior Art Combinations and Hindsight Reasoning
Lee International successfully defended a patent relating to semiconductor manufacturing equipment in patent cancellation proceedings. In this case, following the patentee’s request for correction, the petitioner filed an argument brief asserting, as an additional ground, that the invention defined by the corrected claims lacked an inventive step over a new combination of a prior art reference (“D1”) and a reference relating to an electrostatic chuck, which had previously been submitted as documentary evidence. The petitioner also submitted modified drawings, in which the channel arrangements depicted in D1 had been arbitrarily colored and reconstructed. Based on these modified drawings, the petitioner argued that a particular feature of the claimed invention was inherently disclosed in D1 and that the claimed invention could therefore have been easily conceived from D1.
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Korean Supreme Court Reaffirms Novelty and Inventive Step Standards for Compound Selection Inventions
Criteria Applied by Korean Courts in Assessing Novelty and Inventive Step of Compound Selection Inventions For compound selection inventions involving specific compounds (species) selected from a broader class of compounds (genus) disclosed in a prior art reference, Korean courts apply the following criteria in assessing novelty and inventive step: (1) Criteria for Assessing Novelty A compound selection invention lacks novelty if the selected species is specifically disclosed in a prior art reference. Such disclosure includes cases where the selected species is expressly disclosed in the reference, as well as cases where one of ordinary skill in the art could directly recognize the selected species from the disclosure of the reference in light of common technical knowledge at the time of filing (see Supreme Court Case No. 2005 Hu 3338, issued on September 6, 2007; and Supreme Court Case Nos. 2008 Hu 736 and 2008 Hu 743, issued on October 15, 2009).
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MOIP Amends Trademark Examination Guidelines to Streamline Examination and Enhance Objectivity
The Ministry of Intellectual Property (MOIP) amended the Trademark Examination Guidelines and Procedures to improve the speed and efficiency of trademark examination and enhance the objectivity of the examination process. The amendments took effect on July 1, 2026. Enhanced Efficiency of the Partial Refusal System Under the amended Guidelines, where examination of a later-filed trademark application has been suspended due to an identical or similar earlier-filed trademark application owned by another party, if a refusal of all or some of the designated goods of the earlier-filed application becomes final and conclusive, thereby resolving the conflict between the designated goods of the two applications, the grounds for suspension of examination of the later-filed application will be deemed to have ceased to exist as of the date on which the refusal becomes final and conclusive.
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Lee International Partners Share Expertise at International IP Conferences
Yoon Suk SHIN, Managing Partner, and Ara CHO, Partner, of Lee International IP & Law participated as speakers at major international IP conferences held in Budapest, Hungary, and Shanghai, China, respectively, in September 2026. On September 17, 2026, Ms. Shin participated in a panel discussion titled “Generations on Trial: Gen Z vs Boomers” at the 23rd FICPI Open Forum 2026 in Budapest, Hungary. During the session, the panelists shared their experiences and offered practical insights into fostering effective communication and collaboration among professionals of different generations within patent law firms.
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Lee International Participates in Community Cleanup Initiative in Seoul
Patent attorneys from Lee International IP & Law participated in a community cleanup activity alongside volunteers from the Chunghyeon-dong Volunteer Camp in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. The activity was organized as part of a local partnership initiative aimed at bringing together local businesses and volunteer organizations to promote a cleaner and more welcoming community environment.
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