Wu Jing sued the endorsement company; can he sue again after withdrawing the lawsuit?

Compiled from: Southern Metropolis Daily
 
Case review
[5] Recently, the Beijing Internet Court publicly served a copy of the complaint and a court summons to Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances"), in a case concerning online infringement liability disputes between Wu Jing and the company, with Wu Jing as the plaintiff. The case is scheduled for an online trial on the third day after the expiration of the evidence submission period.

 
 

[6] Public records show that in 2013, Wu Jing signed a contract with Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances to become its brand endorser. In the following years, Wu Jing and Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances continued their cooperation. As late as 2017, Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances still referred to Wu Jing as its brand endorser in public statements. However, in November 2021, Wu Jing sued Zhejiang Ke'en Electrical Appliances over an online infringement liability dispute, but ultimately withdrew the lawsuit.
 
[1] Opinions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues concerning the Application of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China
Article 144
[2] If a party withdraws a lawsuit or the people's court treats the case as withdrawn, and the party files another lawsuit based on the same claim, the people's court shall accept the case.
……

 
 

[1] The author's perspective
[3] According to the above judicial interpretation, after a lawsuit is withdrawn in China's civil procedure, the party may still file another lawsuit based on the same facts and same reasons. Because withdrawal does not mean abandonment of rights, it does not result in the loss of the right of action or substantive rights. However, it should be noted that withdrawal will lead to the legal consequence of interrupting the statute of limitations.
 
[4] Furthermore, this case was accepted by the Beijing Internet Court, indicating that the internet is not a lawless place. Since infringement cases involving online behavior differ from general infringement cases and are often related to the characteristics of the internet, China has specifically established three internet courts to handle online infringement disputes. This is not only to make court trials more professional and efficient but also to reflect responsibility for the legal interests of the parties.