Our China trademark lawyers are often asked about the difference between the Nice Classification system for trademarks and China’s trademark subclass system. They are related, but quite different. The Nice Classification system is an international classification of goods and services that separates all possible goods and services into 45 classes: 34 classes for goods and
It is nearly always a good idea to have your Chinese counter-party "chop" or "seal" your China contracts with their official China company chop. There are many types of company chops. Which one should be used? How do you know if the company chop is real? What does a real China company chop look like?
With the launch of the US-China trade war, it should go without saying that China is tough on foreign internet companies doing business in China. Foreign SaaS (Software as a Service) companies are on the front lines of China's internet and the legalities of their operating in China are complicated and generally unfavorable. Our China
A few weeks ago I got a fascinating email from someone in response to my post, Top Ten Reasons Chinese Companies Fail in America. But before you read this email, let me make clear that there are Chinese companies that do a good job operating in the United States and my publishing this email is NOT intended
Since 1994, China has had a quota on the number of foreign films that can be shown in Chinese theaters on a revenue sharing basis (i.e., with the Chinese distributor remitting some percentage of the revenues to the foreign film’s producer). The quota started at 10 per year in 1994, was increased to 20 films
President Trump last week announced that the U.S. will impose 25% tariffs on about $50 billion worth of Chinese imports, to punish China for its “systematic theft” of U.S. intellectual property and/or to reduce America's trade deficit with China. China fired back by announcing it would impose 25% tariffs on about $50 billion worth of
Hardly a day goes by without one of our China employment lawyers getting an email from a China expat seeking legal help involving an ex-employer. Many times they will briefly describe their situation and conclude their email with something like, "do I have a case?" Our employment attorneys nearly always respond with something like the
Over the past couple weeks, the Chinese Internet has been abuzz with chatter about how Chinese movie stars allegedly underreport income via a dual-contract system in which only one contract is disclosed to the tax authorities. The ruckus started when television personality Cui Yongyuan uploaded a redacted actor employment contract apparently for Chinese A-list actress
Our China IP lawyers have lately been seeing a steady increase in China design patent filings, as Western companies increasingly come to understand the need to be proactive in protecting their IP from China. We file most design patents to protect product designs, but some are filed for defensive purposes. The defensive design patents are
The one thing I know for sure about China is, I will never know China. It’s too big, too old, too diverse, too deep. There’s simply not enough time. – Anthony Bourdain, On Parts Unknown First Kate Spade and now Anthony Bourdain. What the hell is happening? How incredibly sad. I feel compelled to repost
