On March 20, 2003 the Beijing High People's Court in its final ruling on a landmark patent case appealed by Shanghai SailStar Machinery (Group) Co., Ltd. against the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) Patent Reexamination Board, reversed both the first instance ruling of the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court and the original decision by the SIPO Patent Reexamination Board. These prior decisions, which ruled for the invalidation of one of the appellant's important utility model patents for washing machines, were over-turned and the appellant's patent confirmed. The said patent holds important significance for the industrial washing machine industry in China. East IP represented the wining party which is a major foreign invested company in this field.