The key facts

  • Raids at BYD's offices in the Netherlands were carried out on Jaguar Land Rover's claim
  • The Hague court is examining whether the BYD Ti7 SUV infringes intellectual property rights
  • Ti7 sales began in September, and BYD plans to bring the model to the European market

Raids on the eve of a court hearing

Raids were carried out at the Dutch offices of Chinese automaker BYD, initiated by Britain's Jaguar Land Rover, which accuses the company of copying the Defender SUV. According to The Guardian, bailiffs acted on behalf of Jaguar Land Rover, which calls the Chinese competitor's product a 'clone of the Defender'.

What the court will have to decide

The raids took place on the eve of proceedings at The Hague court, which begin this week. The court will have to determine whether there are grounds for accusations of intellectual property infringement regarding the BYD Ti7 SUV, whose sales began in September. The Chinese company intends to bring this model to the European market as well, so the outcome of the case directly affects its plans in the region.

Context

Earlier, in September, Jaguar Land Rover offered NATO countries to supply them with the Defender military SUV — according to Gazeta.Ru, the company presented such an initiative. This is a separate report about the model around which the dispute with BYD is unfolding; sources do not report any connection between the two events.