Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP (JD Supra China)

China is continuing to move forward with its first comprehensive privacy law. China recently issued a second version of the draft Personal Information Protection Law (Draft PIPL) which will be open for public comments until May 28, 2021. (An earlier version of the law was released at the end of 2020.) The law is anticipated to come into effect sometime in the next one to two years...

Year 2020 definitely is a milestone year for China in building up and strengthening its regulatory legislation in the field of international trade.  Following the Regulations on Unreliable Entity List (“UEL”), the Export Control Law came out on October 17 and will come into effect on December 1, 2020.  Obviously, this Export Control Law of…

Companies doing business in China may see an increase in enforcement actions with the enactment of a new cybersecurity regulation and the enforcement powers of the Public Security Bureaus (PSBs) officially codified. The regulation – Provisions on Internet Security Supervision and Inspection by Public Security Organs – is now in effect, more than a year after the enactment of the country’s...

China has put a halt to Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) in China. In a recent notice, China declared ICOs to be an illegal fund raising tool and indicated it is reviewing previous ICOs for possible fraudulent practices. Money previously raised will also have to be returned.

In April of 2017, the Supreme People’s Court (“SPC”) and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (“SPP”) passed and released a new judicial interpretation dealing with criminal infringement of citizens’ personal digital information (the “SPC Data Privacy Interpretation”). Approved and promulgated, the SPC Data Privacy Interpretation came into effect on June 1, 2017, and it enhances and clarifies...

In order to promote the sustainable and healthy development of venture capital investment, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation have jointly promulgated the Circular on Pilot Tax Policies for Venture Capital Firms and Individual Angel Investors (Cai Shui [2017] No. 38) (the “Circular“) on April 28, 2017.

Following the depreciation of Chinese currency RMB and the reduction in China’s foreign exchange reserves, foreign companies and individuals in China have met hurdles in moving their money out of China, and overseas companies have experienced delays of payments by their Chinese business partners.

The State Council published the Guiding Opinions on Accelerating Social Credit System Establishment by Further Developing Joint Incentives for Honest Market Participants and Joint Penalties for Dishonest Market Participants, Guofa [2016] No. 33) (the “Opinions”) on June 12, 2016.

On June 14, 2016, the State Council issued Opinions on Establishing the Fair Competition Review System in the Development of Market System (hereinafter “Opinions”), which finally uncovers the veil of this system.

Following a surge of investment in China’s general aviation sector around 2013, the sector has experienced down-turns due to the overall slowing of the economy in 2015. On May 17, 2016, the General Office of the State Council announced a guideline to boost China’s general aviation (“GA”)[1] industry, named the Guiding Opinions to Promote the Development of the General Aviation Industry (Guo Ban...

The Ministry of Transportation issued the revised Provisions on the Administration of Business Licensing for General Aviation (Order of the Ministry of Transportation [2016] No. 31)(“Order No. 31”) on April 7, 2016. Order No. 31, which became effective on June 1, 2016 amended the Provisions on the Administration of Business Licensing for General Aviation issued by the Civil Aviation...

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (“SAFE”) issued a Notice on Foreign Exchange Administration Issues concerning Investment in the Interbank Bond Market by Foreign Institutional Investors (the “Notice”) on May 27, 2016, which further clarifies the supervision and administration of the investment in the interbank bond market by foreign institutional investors.

On February 25, 2016, China’s Legislative Affairs of the State Council (“SCLAO”) released the Draft Amendment of PRC Anti-Unfair Competition Law (“Draft Amendment”) and started to solicit public comments on the Draft Amendment until March 25, 2016. Click here for the unofficial translation of the Draft Amendment.

The State Administration of Industry and Commerce (“SAIC”) has promulgated the Measures for Supervision and Administration of the Product Quality in the Circulation Sector (??????????????) (“Measures”) on March 21, 2016, and these Measures will be effective on May 1, 2016.

On January 29, 2016, the State Administration of Taxation, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Science and Technology jointly issued the Revised Measure for Certification of High and New Technology Enterprise (Guo Ke Fa Huo [2016] No. 32) (the “Revised Measure”). The Revised Measure is an amendment to the Measure for Certification of High and New Technology Enterprise issued in 2008 (the

On February 25, 2016, The State Counsel Legislative Affairs Office (“SCLAO”) released a draft amendment (“Draft Amendment”) of the PRC Anti-Unfair Competition Law (“AUCL”) for comment by industry and other stakeholders. Article 5 of the 1993 AUCL provides the basis for claims against Business Operators for unfair trade practices involving the misuse and misappropriation of trade dress,...

Since 2010, China’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) and the State Council Legislative Affairs Office (SCLAO) have been revising China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law of 1993 (AUCL). This February the SCLAO released a draft revision of the AUCL for public comment. In general, the AUCL is broad, covering unfair trade practices that relate to intellectual property rights, anti-cor

On August 26, 2015, the Trademark Office of The State Administration For Industry & Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (“TMO”) issued revised guidelines entitled Applications for Recordal of Licenses of Registered Trademarks, Recordal of Licensor/Licensee Name Change, Recordal of Early Termination of Trademark Licenses and Recordal of Withdrawal of Trademark Licenses (“2015 Guidelines”).

China Premier Li Keqiang presided over a State Council executive meeting on February 14, 2016 in which it was decided that China would commence a new pilot program (the “Pilot Program”) in ten cities and provinces along with five new districts to provide more flexible rules to boost service trade. On February 22, 2016, the State Council issued the Official Reply of the State Council on Approving...

On May 13, 2015, the highest judicial institution in China, the Supreme People’s Court, issued the Detailed Rules of Implementation of the Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Case Guidance Work. This judicial interpretation marks a significant step in improving the Case Guidance System in China’s judiciary.

After a period of significant growth from 2009 to 2014, the Chinese art market has experienced a drastic decline in the first half of 2015 with reports that the fine art auction turnover contracted at 30% less than the 2014 period. Interestingly, Ai Weiwei, one of China’s most well-known and most controversial contemporary artists, has not been affected by this turn in the market.

On August 30, 2015, the Washington Post broke a story that the Obama administration is developing a package of economic sanctions that will target Chinese companies and individuals who have benefitted from cybertheft. The new sanctions would come at a time when commerce between the two countries is thriving, but political relations are strained.

June 10, 2015 marked the day that the Chinese government released a new draft law for public comment. China’s increased awareness of the long lasting effects of pollution on the country’s land, water, and people is reflected in the 2015 Environmental Protection Tax Law.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has revised the rules on margin trading and short selling in response to the current conditions surrounding China’s stock market. The new rules were released to the public on June 12, 2015 as a draft document for public comment.

The Chinese e-commerce industry is rapidly expanding, and the nation is the world’s second largest online retail market. The business-to-consumer industry in particular is expected to see record growth in the next few years. Until recently, the e-commerce market was not specifically regulated. The Chinese government, however, has begun to implement regulations to boost the e-commerce industry for

On May 4, 2015, the National Development and Reform Commission (“NDRC”) and seven agencies including the National Health and Family Planning Commission and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security jointly published Opinions on Promoting Drug Price Reform (the “Opinions”). The NDRC also issued a Notice on Strengthening Monitoring of Drug Prices (“Notice”) and a press release on the...

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Culture jointly issued a notice of the Relevant Handling Procedures for Foreigners Entering China for the Accomplishment of Short-term Work Assignments (the “Notice”) on November 6th, 2014 and this Notice became effective on January 1st, 2015.

So far in China there have not been any published decisions regarding price-fixing or other anti-competitive agreements based on concerted action by competitors. There is also no Chinese legal precedent for including potential competitors in the analysis of antitrust law compliance. But China’s antitrust enforcers are very much aware of how the U.S. and EC enforce antitrust laws.

On January 19, 2015, China’s foreign investment regulatory authority Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) released a draft of new Foreign Investment Law (“Draft Law”) (See blog article Comparison Chart re JV Law and Foreign Investment Law Draft for Comments dated February 10, 2015).

China’s adoption of the Anti-Monopoly Law (“AML”)is a landmark in the evolution of China's economic transformation. The AML was a carefully thought-out, negotiated, strategic development dictated by the central government, a process that started almost twenty years ago. China has moved from a centrally planned command economy to one that is largely, despite the existence of state-owned...