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By Li Zhongsheng King&Wood Mallesons’ Intellectual Property Group

untitled1.Introduction

More than 30 years have passed since China took a substantial leap forward in the judicial protection of intellectual property (IP); opening up policy and updating trial practice.

After joining the WTO, the IP legislative department was widely regarded as the most internationalized department in the Chinese legal system with regular changes made to its laws and judicial interpretations (including the Patent Law, the Trademark Law, the Copyright Law and the Law against Unfair Competition).

Looking at these legislative changes now, there are several principles that stand out:
Continue Reading Comments on judicial protection of intellectual property in Chinese courts in 2014

By Lin Jiuchu  Zhang Jiaqi King&Wood Mallesons’ Intellectual Property Group

林久初Case review

Teletubbies is a TV program jointly created by DHX Worldwide Limited and a subsidiary corporation of BBC for children. It was broadcasted by BBC between 1997 and 2001 and became very popular nationwide. Ever since its debut, Teletubbies TV program has gained huge business success and numerous rewards and was broadcasted by 35 media in 120 countries. CCTV also introduced it into China and began to broadcast it on February 11, 2002, since when it was adored and watched by a large number of Chinese children and parents. Apart from the TV program, its correlative CDs, books, stuffed toys and clothes were also very popular. As the name of a famous TV program and cartoon characters, Teletubbies was widely known in China in a very short time.
Continue Reading Legitimate rights of the specific name of famous services, TV programs and cartoon characters shall be protected as prior rights under Article 32 of the 2014 Trademark Law

By Chen Changhui King&Wood Mallesons’ Intellectual Property Group

untitledAfter the Third Amendments to the Chinese Patent Law, Tort Liability Law (2009), Opinions on Further Strengthening Combat Against Infringement Upon Intellectual Property and Manufacture and Sales of Counterfeit Commodities (2011) issued by the State Council, the New Civil Procedure Law (2012), and Judicial Interpretation of Civil Procedure Law (2015) have been promulgated consecutively, and China is preparing to join The Hague Agreements Concerning the International Registration of Designs. For the purpose to enhance patent enforcements and adapt to these treaties, laws and regulations, the SIPO published Draft of the Fourth Amendments to the Chinese Patent Law (for public comments) on April 1, 2015. The Draft comprises substantive amendments to a total of 30 articles, including revisions of current 18 articles, addition of 11 articles, deletion of one article, addition of one chapter “Patent Enforcement and Application”, and adaptive wording amendments to or adjustment of two articles.

Main amendments to the current Patent Law in the Draft include the following aspects:
Continue Reading Main amendments in draft of fourth amendments to the Chinese Patent Law

By King & Wood Mallesons’ Banking & Finance Group

At the end of 2014, Shenzhen Municipal Government issued Pilot Measures on QDIE (Qualified Domestic Investment Enterprise), which makes PE funds to have another exit channel. To take this opportunity, we herein briefly introduce and comment on four relatively new forms of loans, and their respective entry and exit channels for PE funds which could be adopted by Shenzhen market, namely the cross-border RMB loans in Qianhai, RMB overseas lending, QFLP (Qualified Foreign Limited Partner), and QDIE. It is worth noting that these channels, such as cross-border RMB loans in Qianhai and QFLP, are not only limited for Shenzhen but also exist at other localities with small variations, while RMB overseas lending can be used throughout the country. As for QDIE, it is a unique channel to Shenzhen.
Continue Reading CHANNELS FOR CROSS-BORDER FUND

0100The booming Chinese market shows its driving demand for FDI. With a clear regulatory framework for inward investment created, it is an exciting time to invest in China for those with the right knowledge. A solid understanding of the inbound policies, taxation and banking regulations is vital to taking advantage of the overall expansion of…

Concurrences Journal,  in partnership with George Mason University School of Law, will hold  “The Global Antitrust Economics Conference” on Friday, May 29, 2015, at the George Mason University School of Law campus in Arlington, VA. This one-day conference (8:30am to 6:00pm) promises to be a unique platform to discuss the hottest issues of Antitrust and…

By Yin Juquan  Pan Faluan  King&Wood Mallesons’ Labor Group

yin_juquanTo hear labor dispute cases fairly and efficiently and to keep the trial criteria of labor dispute cases consistent, many local arbitral and judicial organizations have promulgated guiding opinions based on labor related laws, regulations, and judicial interpretations and with the consideration of local judicial practice.  Anhui Provincial High People’s Court ( “Anhui Provincial Court”) promulgated the Guiding Opinions of Anhui Provincial High Court on Certain Issues in Handling Labor Disputes (“Guiding Opinions”) on January 20th, 2015. The Guiding Opinions absorb some major opinions of national judicial interpretations of labor disputes and local guiding opinions of other municipalities and provinces, and also have some updates on current local judicial practices in handling labor disputes. A good command of these updates could help enterprises mitigate the risks in handling labor disputes. In this article, we will highlight and briefly discuss three main points of the Guiding Opinions. 
Continue Reading Updates of Local Judicial Practice in Labor Disputes — Highlights of Guiding Opinions of Anhui Provincial High Court on Certain Issues in Handling Labor Disputes

By Lucy Lu  Dai Zhengcao King&Wood Mallesons’ Labor Group

lu_lucySince the amendment of the Employment Contract Law in late 2012, together with the release of a series of administrative statutes and divisional regulations, the labor dispatch method seems to become gradually less used.  Worries about the labor dispatch system have spread throughout the whole labor market, which also makes it difficult to determine whether to adopt the method or discard it.  Recently, the Shanghai Administration of Human Resources and Social Security and Shanghai High People’s Court jointly issued Meeting Minutes regarding Applicable Laws on Labor Dispatch (the “Minutes”).  The Minutes provide interpretation regarding the legal consequences of infringement of laws on labor dispatch, the circumstances for sending a dispatched employee back, outsourcing and other problems.  For those employers trapped in such dilemmas, the Minutes are widely considered as a shot in the arm.  Will labor dispatch quickly fade away in a short period due to legal limitations successively released? Will companies assume huge liabilities due to current noncompliance with labor dispatch regulations? The answers may not be  a simple “yes” or “no” based on our following analysis and comments.
Continue Reading Is Labor Dispatch Fading Away? Not That Simple

By Jiang Junlu  Wang Shiyu King&Wood Mallesons’ Labor Goup

jiang_junluChen Yang is about  20 years old from Northeast China, and he had worked at Shanxi Star Coal Mine for five years for underground hauling since February 2008. In June 2013, Chen got a job in Tiancheng Company in Shanghai doing a similar hauling work, which however did not expose to dust. Tiancheng company did not conduct pre-employment health check at the time of employment. In September 2013, he was transferred by Tiancheng to a stucco decorative job which exposed him to a small amount of dust. In November 2013, he felt sick with  tight chest and coughed heavily, and was diagnosed as “third stage of CWP (coal worker’s pneumoconiosis)” with “lung abnormalities and a large shadow in the left lung”.
Continue Reading Who will pay for occupational disease?

By Huang Jianwen  King & Wood Mallesons’ Investment Group

huang_jianwenOn April 24, 2015, the PRC Advertising Law was amended for the first time since its promulgation in 1994 (the “New Advertising Law”) and will take effect on September 1, 2015.

The New Advertising Law clarifies the definition of false advertisement, regulates online advertisement, advertisement targeting minors, and advertising endorsers. It reflects the government’s thoughts on deepening the reform, adjusting functions of government agencies, as well as strengthening market supervision.
Continue Reading The Amended PRC Advertising Law’s Impact on Health-related Advertisements