The Korean Intellectual Property Office (“KIPO”) has adopted the Similar Group Code System, which is similar that of the Japanese Patent Office.

 

Under the Korean Similar Group Code System, when conducting an examination of the similarity between goods/services, examiners decide that if the goods/services are assigned to the same group code, both goods/services are regarded as being similar to each other in principle. The Similar Group Code System is in place for the convenience and acceleration of the examination.

 

However, the Korean Intellectual Property Tribunal and the Korean Patent Court do not follow the Similar Group Code System, but decide/judge the similarity of the goods/services based on the substantial confusion caused.