라이센스계약상 특허권자의 채무불이행에 대한 법적대응 방안 - 특허권자의 도산을 중심으로 -

Not all of the knowledge-based companies have sufficient financial resources to support their own investment plan for business. For this reason, some of these companies will transfer or license their patent rights to create revenue or obtain the financial resources they need. But from the perspective of the licensees, they also need to make a significant investment and expenditure in order to obtain the equipment and manpower they require to exercise the patent rights they are licensed before they enter into such a licensing agreement. In addition, they have to be wary of the potential for future disputes and damages resulting from things like violations of third party rights and the like. For patentees with low amounts of capital or a lack of managerial skills, the chance of default due to bankruptcy, etc. is even higher. As a result, the licensee may face a situation in which it is no longer capable of exercising the license it has obtained. While the Patent Act has provisions that are different from those of typical contracts specified in Civil Law, the endowment of the license is performed through a contract. Therefore, if a party in such a contract is in default, such a situation will be governed by the general provisions in Civil Law, and the remedies set forth in the Civil Law will be applicable. However, in some cases, the license agreement is excluded from the bankruptcy estate. If this happens, the license agreement begins to be governed by the Laws on License Agreements. The Laws on License Agreement govern licenses and license agreements, and are not a single law legal system, but a complicated system composed of a number of different laws. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the possible legal options that can be taken to protect the licensee in the event of a default by the patentee.