China Representative Offices Is your company considering setting up a Representative Office in China? You will likely find that the process is not as easy as it used to be. In many cases, plans for a Chinese Rep Office result in creating a Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise (WFOE), which is one significant step beyond a Rep
Paying lawyers can seem expensive, even if they are only mediocre lawyers. But good lawyers can often save you money because they can save you from your own mistakes. They do that by having both the experience and gravitas to teach you from others’ mistakes. I wrote in a previous post about the PPE nightmare
In a few weeks I will be testifying before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, and this is causing me to become a bit obsessed with US-China terminology. It is also making me increasingly tired of talking about “decoupling” and “cold wars” when there seems to be no clear definition for either. 1. On
China Domain Name Scams If your company has done anything in China (even just sending someone there to meet with a supplier), you have probably received a somewhat official-looking email offering to “help” you stop someone from taking your domain registry in China or maybe somewhere else in the world. Picture this: Your company finally
On August 13, 2019, in Hong Kong for International Business: Stick a Fork in It we made clear Hong Kong would soon cease to be an international business center and companies needed to consider moving out. To say this generated anger would be an understatement. In comments, I was called a “turd”, “hopelessly naive” someone
Demand Letters to Chinese Companies Demand letters have become so common in the United States they seldom have the desired effect. Consequently, many lawyers have stopped sending them, believing you should always sue first and discuss settlement later. For firms that still use them, demand letters are generally sent to attempt to resolve payment or
Well-known trademarks enjoy protection under Chinese law. This protection is the closest China comes to protecting unregistered trademarks. However, the circumstances under which such protection is afforded are limited, given that the standard for a trademark being considered well-known is exceedingly high. To illustrate just how stringent the standard can be, consider a situation I
Many years ago, a Spanish client sent me a U.S. Government list of what the government called “Essential Advice for Doing Business Overseas.” That article no longer exists, but I came across the email where the client and I discussed the list and I am reprising it below, along with some of my own comments.
I recently read a great article in Politico by Brandon Possin, a U.S. foreign service officer (and friend of my colleague Fred Rocafort) who is currently stationed at the U.S. embassy in Tokyo. Possin also has significant blockchain-related credentials. In U.S. Diplomat to Washington: You’re Becoming Obsolete in One Big Area of Tech Policy, he
With the recent slew of foreigner arrests in China for what many assume to be political reasons, the number of clients asking me about the risks to their employees in China has soared. This post is meant to help quantify the arrest/seizure risks to foreigners in China. 1. China as One Giant Casino In Jonathan
