TIPS^®  Taiwan Intellectual Property Special

Taiwan Updates 

New Amendment to the Administrative Litigation Law Takes Effect

The new amendment to the Administrative Litigation Law was promulgated on July 4, 2007 and officially took effect on August 15. The amendment includes the addition of two new articles and the items thereof, and amendments of the provisions in Article 49, Article 98-100, Article 103, Article 104, Article 107, and Article 276.
Article 49 of the amended Administrative Litigation Law introduces more restrictions on the qualification of the advocates in an administrative litigation. Before the amendment, the advocate acting in an administrative proceeding is not necessary to be an attorney, and a kin to the party-concerned may be the advocate without any legal or professional background. The amended Law now specifies that the advocate should be an attorney in a proceeding, unless otherwise with the consent of the presiding judge, and the following people can also be advocates:

1. in an administrative proceeding involving tax matters, a qualified accountant;

2. in an administrative proceeding involving patent matters, a qualified patent agent or patent attorney;

3. if the party-concerned is a legal person, central or district government organization, or a non-legal organization in Public Law, a professional thereof handling legal or litigation-related matters.
The amendment also requires that administrative litigation should be subject to the court fees, which range from NT$1000 to NT$6000 depending on the nature and instance of the trial.