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By Meg Utterback, Daisy Mallett, Holly Blackwell, James McKenzie, Josephine Lao, and Ma Xiao.

China has been at the forefront of a number of recent developments in the dispute resolution space. One notable development is the announcement by the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) of its new rules governing the arbitration of international investment disputes (Rules) and the CIETAC Investment Dispute Resolution Centre in Beijing (CIETAC IDRC), the default centre to administer those Rules. According to CIETAC’s Secretary-General, the Rules seek to “fill the gap” between Chinese commercial and investment arbitration rules and develop and promote the international investment arbitration practice in China[1].
Continue Reading CIETAC Rules Add to Investment Treaty Practice

By Gonzalo Olivera and Alberto Artés King & Wood Mallesons’ Madrid office.

Description of domestic sector

1. Describe the domestic natural gas sector, including the natural gas production, liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage, pipeline transportation, distribution, commodity sales and trading segments and retail sales and usage.

Spain is a renowned gas importer, with less than 1 per cent of the gas consumed within the country coming from domestic production. Spain received natural gas from 11 different countries in 2015, Algeria being the main supplier (55 per cent) followed by France (13 per cent), Qatar (9 per cent) and Nigeria (8 per cent).
Continue Reading Gas Regulation 2017:Spain

By Harry Liu, Sam Li, Olivia Xia  King & Wood Mallesons’ Dispute Resolution group

On 4 November 2017, the Anti-Unfair Competition Law Amendment (“AUCLA”) was ratified by the Thirtieth Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People’s Congress after three rounds of review[1]. It will come into effect on 1 January 2018. It has greatly improved the Anti-Unfair Competition Law (“AUCL”) which was enacted back in 1993.

Commercial bribery, as an integral concern of the AUCL, has been in the spotlight during the amendment process.
Continue Reading Big Change of the Definition of Commercial Bribery

By Gonzalo Olivera and Alberto Artés King & Wood Mallesons’ Madrid group.

Market framework

1.Who are the principal government participants in the electricity sector? What roles do they perform in relation to renewable energy?

At state level, the Ministry of Energy, Tourism and Digital Agenda (MINETAD) is in charge of proposing and executing government policies in relation to energy.
Continue Reading Renewable Energy 2018 : Spain

By King & Wood Mallesons

14 November 2017, King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) continues to be recognized as a leading law firm in the newly published Asialaw Profiles 2018 recognizing 18 practice areas and 29 leadings lawyers. Of the 18 practice areas in which KWM was ranked as a leading law firm, 13 relate to KWM’s top-tier ranking as an Outstanding Law Firm while 5 relate to KWM’s ranking as a Highly Recommended Law Firm in the respective practice area, which set the record for most awards in KWM’s Asialaw Profiles ranking history. In addition, 29 KWM partners were recognized as Leading Lawyers in their respective practice areas for their excellence in both performance and wide referees’ good comments.
Continue Reading King and Wood Mallesons continuously topes the Asialaw profiles 2018

By Shi Bisheng King & Wood Mallesons’ IP group.

On 4 November 2017, the 30th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China passed an amendment to the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People’s Republic of China (“Anti-Unfair Competition Law”), which will come into effect on 1 January 2018. This is the first major amendment to the Anti-Unfair Competition Law since its implementation in 1993, and it will have a significant impact on businesses in China. 
Continue Reading Amendment to China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law

By Stanley Zhou and Andrew Fei King & Wood Mallesons’ Finance & Capital Markets group

The Chinese government has announced that it will ease or remove restrictions on foreign ownership of Chinese securities and futures firms, fund managers, commercial banks, financial asset managers, life insurers and certain other financial institutions.  Subject to certain transition periods, these changes will allow foreign investors to own a majority and eventually a 100% stake in many types of Chinese financial institutions.  The announcement therefore represents one of the most significant steps China has taken to further open up the financial sector in the world’s 2nd largest economy. 
Continue Reading China Eases Restrictions on Foreign Ownership of Chinese FIs

By Richard Bartlett King & Wood Mallesons’ Finance & Capital Markets group

The Chinese market, while similar or identical in many aspects to other markets, is also unique in certain respects.  Sometimes these differences are obvious but sometimes they are not. Whether you are entering the China market for the first time or growing your existing business, it can be crucial to be able to identify and manage these differences, many of which may not be immediately apparent.

相较全球市场，中国市场是存在一些特质的。个别情况下，这些特质较为突显。不管是初来乍到还是在中国市场已打下些许基础，熟稔并懂得利用这些特质来为我所用，尤为关键。而这些特质，有的显而易见，有的则不易察觉。 
Continue Reading A Lawyer’s Guide to Working in China

By Lin Jiuchu, Zhang Jiaqi and Xu Huiwen King & Wood Mallesons’ IP group

Case profile

On 10 June 2015, ROYER BRANDS INTERNATIONAL S.A.R.L. (“Royer”) filed an application with the PRC Trademark Office (“CTMO”) to register trademark No. 17165853 “ ” for designated goods in Class 18, which includes items such as backpacks, wallets, purses, leather belts, umbrellas, parasols and walking sticks.

The CTMO refused the application on the grounds that “Dutch” means “of the Netherlands” (“荷兰” in Chinese). Names of foreign countries are not permitted to use as trademarks under Chinese law. Royer appealed the CTMO’s decision with the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board (“TRAB”). Citing Article 10.1.2 of the PRC Trademark Law, TRAB agreed with the CTMO’s decision.

Royer then initiated administrative litigation. After hearing the case, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court (“Beijing IP Court”) found in favor of Royer and overturned the decision of TRAB. 
Continue Reading A Case Study of VON DUTCH

By Huang Jianwen King & Wood Mallesons’ Commercial & Regulatory group

In order to deepen the reform in the field of drugs, the China Food and Drug Administration (“CFDA”) issued the Drugs Administration Law (Draft for Consultation) (“Draft”) on 23 October 2017. The Draft incorporates and reflects material contents in the reform of drugs field in recent years, including fully implementing the Marketing Authorization Holder (“MAH”) system, cancelling certificates of Good Manufacturing Practice (“GMP”) and Good Supply Practice (“GSP”), carrying out records management for clinical trial institution and emphasizing legal liabilities on relevant entities in drug research and trial.
Continue Reading Analysis on the Drugs Administration Law (Draft for Consultation)