On September 26, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released the Administrative Measures for Technical Investigation Officers in the Administrative Protection of Intellectual Property Rights (the "Measures"), with effect on the date of release.

The Measures provide regulations regarding the positioning, duties, appointment, rights and obligations, assignment and dispatch, procedures and norms, management, and supervision of technical investigation officers. According to the Measures, technical investigation officers perform the following duties in the handling of administrative cases related to intellectual property: providing recommendations on focal points of disputes over technical facts, as well as on the scope, sequence, and methods of investigation; participating in investigation, evidence collection, and examination; participating in questioning and oral hearings; presenting technical investigation opinions; assisting case officers in coordinating experts and professionals from relevant technical fields to provide their opinions; and attending meetings related to the handling of cases. Additionally, the Measures specify that technical investigation officers independently produce technical investigation opinions, and they are not subject to questioning by the parties involved during the course of case handling, should uphold objectivity and neutrality regarding the technical facts involved in the cases, and are bound by confidentiality regarding the information they become aware of. In general, they are not obliged to participate in administrative reconsideration or administrative litigation that may arise after conclusion of the cases.

(Source: China National Intellectual Property Administration)