CASE DIGEST: Kenneth Roy Savege vs. Taypin

KENNETH ROY SAVAGE/K ANGELIN EXPORT TRADING, owned and managed by GEMMA DEMORAL-SAVAGE vs. JUDGE APRONIANO B. TAYPIN, Presiding Judge, RTC-BR. 12, Cebu City, CEBU PROVINCIAL PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE, NATIONAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION, Region VII, Cebu City, JUANITA NG MENDOZA, MENDCO DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, ALFREDO SABJON and DANTE SOSMEÑA

G.R. No. 134217, May 11, 2000 

FACTS: Petitioners Savage, seek to nullify the search warrant issued by respondent Judge Aproniano B. Taypin of the Regional Trial Court, Br. 12 Cebu City, which resulted in the seizure of certain pieces of wrought iron furniture from the factory of petitioners located in Biasong, Talisay, Cebu.

The complaint was lodged by private respondent Eric Ng Mendoza, president and general manager of Mendco Development Corporation (MENDCO), alleging that Savage’s products are the object of unfair competition involving design patents, punishable under Art. 189 of the Revised Penal Code as amended. Savage contends however, that there was no existence of offense leading to the issuance of a search warrant and eventual seizure of its products.

Issue: Whether or not unfair competition involving design patents are punishable under Article 189 of the Revised Penal Code.

HELD: To provide a clear view, the Intellectual Property Code took effect on January 1, 1998. The repealing clause of the IPC provides that Articles 188 and 189 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC), Presidential Decree No. 49, are hereby repealed The issue involving the existence of "unfair competition" as a felony involving design patents, referred to in Art. 189 of the Revised Penal Code, has been rendered moot and academic by the repeal of the article. Hence, the search warrant cannot even be issued by virtue of a possible violation of the IPR Code.

There is no mention of any crime of "unfair competition" involving design patents in the controlling provisions on Unfair Competition of the RPC. It is therefore unclear whether the crime exists at all, for the enactment of RA 8293 did not result in the reenactment of Art. 189 of the Revised Penal Code.

The court is are prevented from applying these principles, along with the new provisions on Unfair Competition found in the IPR Code, to the alleged acts of the petitioners, for such acts constitute patent infringement as defined by the same Code

Although the case traces its origins to the year 1997 or before the enactment of the IPR Code, Article 22 of the Revised Penal Code provides that penal laws shall be applied retrospectively, if such application would be beneficial to the accused. Since the IPR Code effectively obliterates the possibility of any criminal liability attaching to the acts alleged, then RPC provisions must be applied.