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The ins and outs of Schedule A cases in the U.S. / 美国附表A案件来龙去脉
In recent years, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has seen a significant increase in the number of IP infringement cases it handles, rapidly becoming a hotspot for IP infringement lawsuits against Chinese cross-border e-commerce companies in the United States. The majority of these cases are known as "Schedule A cases" where the defendants' information is submitted confidentially in "Schedule A". According to Local Rule 26.2 of the court, plaintiff can file a lawsuit and list the defendants' names in a non-public "Schedule A" without having to disclose specific defendant names and information in the complaints. As a result, defendants are initially unaware of the lawsuits filed against them, which aligns with the plaintiff's intentions. 近年来，伊利诺伊州北区联邦地区法院受理的知产侵权诉讼案件数量显著增加，迅速成为中国跨境电商在美国面临知产侵权诉讼的"重灾区"，其中大多数案件被称为"附表A案件"。之所以称"附表A案件"，是因为被告信息被密封在"附表A"中提交。根据该法院第26.2条审判规则，原告可在起诉时申请将被告信息列在不公开的"附表A"中，而不需在起诉状中披露具体的被告姓名和信息。因此，被告在初期并不知晓对他们提起了诉讼，这也正符合原告的意图。As the first step of "Schedule A" lawsuits, plaintiff file the complaint and Schedule A. Plaintiff refers to defendants collectively as "Schedule A Defendants" in the complaint, thus not publicly disclosing the identities of the defendants. Plaintiff attorneys submit a sealed list of defendants in Schedule A, making it inaccessible to any third party other than the plaintiff and the court from the federal court's case filing database.作为"附表A案件"第一步，原告律师会提交起诉状和附表A。原告在起诉状中将被告统称为"附表A被告"，因此不会公开被告具体身份。原告律师将附表A中的被告名单密封提交，使得除原告和法院之外的任何第三方无法从联邦法院案件数据库中获取这些被告信息。After filing the complaint, plaintiff will submit a unilateral motion applying for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO). According to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP), the issuance of a TRO can proceed without a hearing or even notifying the defendants. Once the TRO is granted, plaintiff immediately deliver it to third-party e-commerce platforms. Platforms will temporarily prohibit the shops from continuing to sell infringing products and freeze the shops' assets and payment accounts. Subsequently, plaintiff will serve the complaint and TRO on the defendants.在提交起诉状后，原告会提交一份单方面动议申请临时禁令。根据美国《联邦民事诉讼规则》，临时禁令的签发可在不经过听证程序或不通知被告的情况下进行。一旦临时禁令被批准，原告会立即将其送达第三方电商平台。这些平台会临时禁止相关店铺继续销售侵权产品，并冻结店铺的资产和收付款账户。之后，原告才会将起诉状和临时禁令送达被告。After the service of complaint and TRO, plaintiff will apply for Preliminary Injunction to extend the relief granted in the TRO during the litigation. After the enforcement of Preliminary Injunction, plaintiff will offer settlement terms to responding defendants. At this stage, defendants' e-commerce business and accounts are frozen, making them eager to resolve the issue quickly by accepting the plaintiff's proposed settlement terms, and being forced to pay a substantial settlement fee.在起诉状和临时禁令送达后，原告会申请初步禁令，以延续在诉讼期间临时禁令所提供的救济。在初步禁令生效后，原告会向回应的被告提出和解条件。此时，被告的电商业务和账户已被冻结，这使得被告急于通过接受原告提出的和解条件来迅速解决问题，从而被迫支付高额的和解费用。Lastly, plaintiff will apply to the court for a Default and Default Judgment against defendants who have not responded, and courts typically grant Default Judgments in support of the plaintiff's main litigation requests. Defendant may be ordered to (1) be prohibited to sell any infringing products in the US and on any online marketplace and pay either of actual damages plus the profits generated from the selling of infringing products or statutory damages pursuant to 17 USC §504, at the plaintiff's election.最后，原告会向法院申请对未应诉被告裁定缺席并作出缺陷判决。法院通常会批准缺席判决以支持原告主要诉请。法院可能会判令被告（1）禁止在美国及任何在线市场销售任何侵权产品；（2）根据原告的选择，支付实际损害赔偿和销售侵权产品获得的利润，或根据《美国法典》第17章第504条规定的法定赔偿。In accordance with 17 USC §504, for infringement concerning any one work involved in the action, statutory damages could exceed $750 for individual infringer, or $30,000 when two or more infringers are liable jointly and severally. While the statutory damages may be increased to no more than $150,000 in cases of wilful infringement, the court may reduce the statutory damages to not less than $200 if the infringer was not aware and had no reason to believe that his or her acts constituted an infringement of copyright.根据《美国法典》第17章第504条，对于涉及诉讼中的任一侵权作品，单个侵权者的法定赔偿可能超过750美元，当两个或多个侵权者共同侵权时法定赔偿可能超过30,000美元。在故意侵权的情况下，法定赔偿可能增加至不超过150,000美元，但如果侵权者不知道且没有理由相信其行为构成了版权侵权，法院可能会将法定赔偿减少到不低于200美元。Seek sufficient time for negotiation and settlement while preparing for the defense / 争取充足时间谈判和解并同时做答辩准备
Motion to Alternative Service or Dismiss. Pursuant to Rule 4(f) of FRCP, court documents can be served to foreign defendants (1) by means under the Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents (Convention) for service within contracting state of the Convention. As both U.S. and China are contracting states to the Convention, service to the defendant in China must be conducted by requesting the central authority designated by China to service the documents, rather than email service, which would be invalid. By filing a motion to alternative service, the court may order the plaintiff to serve the documents in accordance with the Convention, thereby providing more time for settlement negotiations or preparation of defence.
申请替代性送达或撤诉。根据美国《联邦民事诉讼规则》第4(f)条，法院文件可通过《海牙送达公约》规定的方式向居住在公约缔约国的被告送达。由于美国和中国均是该公约缔约国，因此对中国境内被告的送达需通过中国指定的中央机关进行，而非通过电子邮件送达，因为电子邮件送达将被视为无效。通过提出替代性送达动议，法院可能会要求原告按照《海牙送达公约》重新送达文件，从而为和解谈判或准备答辩提供更多时间。
Motion for Extension of Time to Answer. If the above motion is denied, an extension for the defense period may be requested. If the original deadline for filing an Answer has not passed, the court generally grants an extension if there is a good cause. If original deadline has passed, the court might grant an extension if the deadline was missed due to excusable neglect.
申请延长答辩期。如果上述动议申请被拒绝，可申请延长答辩期。如果原答辩期尚未截止，法院通常会在有正当理由的情况下授予延期。如果原答辩期已过，法院可能会在因可原谅的疏忽而错过答辩期的情况下授予延期。
Potential settlement terms may include (1) paying certain amount of royalty to plaintiff in exchange for a license agreement for the patent, or (2) ceasing to sell any allegedly infringing products. Subject to negotiations, plaintiff may demand compensation in addition to the above terms. Settlement can be legalised either by settlement Agreement or consent Judgement. A settlement agreement, similar to civil mediation agreement in China, is a resolution between disputing parties to settle their dispute without proceeding to judgment. Upon execution of settlement agreement, the lawsuit will generally be terminated by plaintiff's motion to withdraw. In the absence of such motion, the defendant can file the settlement agreement with a motion to dismiss to the court to terminate the lawsuit. Alternatively, by joint submission of settlement terms to the court, a consent judgement can be issued without defendant's admission of infringement. Similar to civil mediation paper in China, while a consent judgement is enforceable against the defendant, it is not subject to appeal in normal circumstances.
可能的和解条款包括：（1）向原告支付一定数额的专利使用费以换取专利使用许可；或（2）停止销售任何涉嫌侵权的产品。根据谈判情况，原告可能在上述条款之外要求额外的赔偿。和解可以通过和解协议或同意判决来实现。和解协议类似于中国的民事调解协议，是双方当事人通过协商解决纠纷而不进入审判程序的一种方式。和解协议签订后，诉讼通常会因原告提交撤诉动议而终止。如果原告未提交撤诉动议，被告可以将和解协议连同驳回起诉动议一并提交至法院以终止案件。另一种方式是，双方共同向法院提交和解条款，法院可在不要求被告承认侵权的情况下作出同意判决。类似于中国的民事调解书，同意判决具有强制执行力，但在通常情况下不可上诉。
Answer. If a settlement is not reached before the deadline for filing an Answer, the case may proceed to trial, and the defendant must file an Answer as soon as possible to avoid a default judgment. Negotiations can continue during the proceedings, and a settlement can be reached at any time before the judgment is made.
答辩。如果在答辩期限结束前未能达成和解，案件可能会进入审判阶段，被告需尽快提交答辩状以避免缺席判决。在诉讼过程中，可继续与原告进行谈判，并在法院作出判决之前的任何时间达成和解。
In conclusion, mastering the complexities of Schedule A cases in the U.S., along with the strategies for negotiating and defending against such claims, is vital for Chinese cross-border e-commerce companies. By being proactive and thoroughly prepared, these companies can better navigate legal challenges and safeguard their business interests in a fiercely competitive market.
综上所述，掌握美国附表A案件的复杂性，并制定有效的谈判和抗辩策略，对于中国跨境电商至关重要。积极应对和充分准备可更有效地应对法律挑战，并在竞争激烈的市场中保护自身的商业利益。
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