作者:彭亚 金杜律师事务所争议解决

peng_ya电子签名的核心是电子认证技术,凡是在电子通讯中能够起到证明当事人身份以及其对电子数据内容进行认可的电子认证技术,都可以归入为电子签名的范畴。在日益普遍和重要的互联网金融线上交易中,电子签名被广泛运用,用以保障互联网金融线上交易的安全性。相应的,当互联网金融交易发生纠纷时,电子合同或者电子文件中的电子签名的效力等问题就成为首当其冲需要考虑,或者需要解决的问题。
Continue Reading 互联网金融纠纷解决之电子签名

By Xu Ping Iris Feng and Feng Yuan King & Wood Mallesons’ Mergers & Acquisitions Group

xu_pingOn April 9, 2015, the State Council officially promulgated the Decision on the Bank Card Clearing Agencies Access Management (《关于实施银行卡清算机构准入管理的决定》) (the“Decision”), which will come into effect on June 1, 2015.

As a response to a WTO ruling that China must open its bank card clearing market, the long awaited Decision announces the opening of market to both domestic and foreign players.  As a result, China UnionPay, the only domestic bank card clearing agency for decades, will usher competitors, including international card companies, banks, as well as domestic third party payment agencies, who will be able to operate RMB-denominated bank card clearing business in the People’s Republic of China (the “PRC” or “China”).
Continue Reading New Bank Card Clearing Rules Heralds a Post-UnionPay Era

作者:徐萍 冯彩红 冯源 金杜律师事务所公司并购

xu_ping2015年4月9日,国务院正式颁布了《关于实施银行卡清算机构准入管理的决定》(以下简称“《决定》”),该《决定》将自2015年6月1日起实施。

世贸组织曾裁定要求中国开放人民币银行卡清算市场。在经历了漫长的等待之后,《决定》终于出台,宣布同时向内、外资开放银行卡清算市场,此举可以视为回应了裁定中的要求。《决定》的颁布也意味着包括国际银行卡机构、银行、国内第三方支付机构在内的主体可在中华人民共和国(以下简称“中国”)境内开展人民币银行卡清算业务,由此国内唯一的银行卡清算机构中国银联将不得不与多个竞争者争夺人民币银行卡清算市场的份额。
Continue Reading 新银行卡清算规则迎来“后银联”时代

By Jiang Junlu King & Wood Mallesons’ Labor & Employment Group

At the end of 2013, the Interim Regulation on Labor Dispatch was adopted in the ministerial conference of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. This regulation was promulgated before the Lunar New Year and became effective on March 1, 2014, which is expected to prelude the readjustment of labor dispatch.
Continue Reading Back-to-Basics: Past and Present Life of Labor Dispatch

By Liu Xiangwen, Monique Carroll and Zhu Yuanyuan King & Wood Mallesons’ Dispute Resolution Group

Much has been written on bribery and corruption in China, including the differences between criminal bribery and commercial bribery, and of course, the need for an effective compliance programme. However, foreign companies operating in certain complex or sensitive industries in China need to do more than instil an anti-corruption policy. What is needed is an in-depth understanding of the unique legal environment in their industries. This is because in some industries, particular conduct or business models permitted elsewhere, may be very sensitive and considered bribery or corruption. We recommend that companies operating in China adapt their compliance programme to account for industry specific regulations and sensitivities and undertake regular internal compliance audits as a check on the effectiveness of the compliance programme and to ensure that it remains up-to-date.
Continue Reading What does an Effective Anti-bribery and Corruption Programme Require?

By Meg Utterback and Holly Blackwell King & Wood’s Dispute Resolution Group

The concept of US discovery is very alien to the uninitiated litigant and particularly foreign to Chinese parties, because the Chinese litigation process is far different.  China proceedings are conducted much like other civil code jurisdictions, with the parties proffering only evidence that supports the claims or defenses.  US discovery is intended to uncover both supporting and damaging evidence.  US discovery rules provide litigants liberal access to information possessed by opponents, and even third parties, such as internal company emails, documents, records, and policies.  Disclosure of requested information may be required, even though such disclosure would be prohibited under PRC law.  The Hague Convention provides one avenue of obtaining evidence located in China, but US courts are not always willing to require the use of the Hague Convention procedures where a party has submitted to the jurisdiction of the US court.  Recent US cases demonstrate the challenges of requiring discovery from Chinese parties and the challenges that Chinese parties face in US courts.Continue Reading Obtaining Discovery in China for Use in US Litigation

By Richard W. Wigley and Xu Jing King & Wood’s Dispute Resolution Group

The means available for effective enforcement of settlement agreements associated with litigation is an issue which is often raised by litigants in the P.R.C.  Specifically, it is often asked, what is a party’s recourse should the other party breach a private settlement agreement, but where the breach occurs after the Appeal in the litigation at issue has been withdrawn? As P.R.C. law is a civil law system based upon the statutory law, there is no equivalent to the case precedent system of common law countries, such as the United States, Australia, and the U.K.  There is relevant statutory law as provided in the Civil Procedure Law of the P.R.C., but there exist certain legal issues which may require additional clarification beyond the statutory law.  With this in mind, as per the Article 1 of the Supreme People’s Court’s Provisions on Case Guidance ("Provisions"), the Supreme People’s Court does on occasion publish what it sees as "indicative" cases, where the decisions reached in the cases are deemed to be used as guidelines in relevant judicial review by the lower courts.[1]Continue Reading Supreme People’s Court provides a Guideline Case for Court Enforcement of Settlement Agreements

By Liu Xiang Wen Xia Dongxia and Li Xinyu King & Wood’s Dispute Resolution Group

Under PRC laws, the legal representative of a company is the person who acts in the name of the company and represents the company in the exercise of its rights and obligations. The legal representative is a fundamental part of a company’s corporate governance structure. To an extent, the person who is appointed to the position of the legal representative is authorized to conduct many of the company’s affairs. However, the legal representative must fulfill certain duties while exercising his/her rights. This article will briefly introduce the potential legal risks that a legal representative may face under civil, criminal and administrative laws and how such risks are often prevented or minimized based on China’s legal practices.

I. The legal representative of a company should also be its board chairman or its general manager

Continue Reading Minimizing the Risks that Legal Representatives Face

作者:刘相文 夏东霞 李欣宇 金杜律师事务所争议解决

根据我国法律,公司的法定代表人是指依法代表法人行使民事权利,履行民事义务的主要负责人,对外以公司名义行事。法定代表人是公司法人治理结构最重要的组成部分。从某种意义上讲,担任了公司的法定代表人,即掌控了公司的核心权力。然而,法定代表人在行使权力的同时,也必须承担相应的法律责任。本文拟从民事、刑事和行政三个方面,对公司法定代表人可能承担的法律责任做简要分析,并结合我国司法实践对法定代表人法律风险的防范提出建议。

一、公司的法定代表人应由公司的董事长或总经理担任

Continue Reading 公司法定代表人的法律风险及防范

By Susan Ning, Liu Jia and Hazel Yin

China Securities Regulation Commission ("CSRC") is the authority in charge of supervising Chinese listed companies.  In August 2010 and November 2011, CSRC published on its website two FAQs addressing application of the merger control regime under the Anti-Monopoly Law ("AML") to listed companies.
 Continue Reading CSRC’s Guidance on Merger Control of Listed Chinese Companies