The Supreme People’s Court and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate have jointly released a judicial interpretation that sets clear benchmarks for criminal liability in trade secret infringement cases.

The interpretation is mainly about legal application in the handling of criminal cases involving infringement of intellectual property rights. It specifies that cases where the resulting losses or illegal gains exceed 300,000 yuan ($41,000) constitute serious situations of trade secret infringement. For repeat offenders — those previously penalized for trade secret violations within two years — the threshold is lowered to 100,000 yuan.

To ensure fair and accurate assessment of losses, the interpretation differentiates between types of conduct based on their level of social harm. In cases involving theft or other improper means of obtaining trade secrets, which are deemed to pose greater risks, losses can be calculated using the reasonable licensing fee for the secret — even if the information was not used.

The interpretation also provides detailed guidance on calculating illegal gains. Any financial or material benefits obtained through the disclosure or unauthorized use of trade secrets can be directly considered illicit income. Profits derived from the use of trade secrets may also be deemed as illegal gains, which can be determined based on the sales volume of infringing products multiplied by the reasonable profit per unit of each infringing product.