Jaguar Land Rover is suing Chinese automaker Jiangling Motor for allegedly copying the Range Rover Evoque, This is now the first and a very rare move by a foreign automaker to fight copycats in the world’s biggest auto market, China.
A court in Beijing’s eastern Chaoyang district has served Jiangling Motor with newly filed actions surrounding copyright and unfair competition. The suit relates to Jiangling’s Landwind X7 SUV copying the design of the Evoque, JLR’s first China-made model that went on sale last year.
Despite widespread and often blatant copying, global automakers generally do not take legal action in China as they feel the odds of winning against local car manufacturers are low. Also, a lawsuit can be bad for branding if the Chinese public think a foreign company is bullying a domestic competitor.
If JLR wins this lawsuit, it could prompt other foreign automakers to also take legal action, said Chen Jihong, a Beijing-based lawyer at Zhong Lun Law Firm, speeding up a shift to stronger enforcement of intellectual property rights.
