China Employment Termination Today: Reinstatement Risk and What Employers Should Do A Supreme People’s Court judicial interpretation effective September 1, 2025, has shifted the risk profile of China employment termination disputes. Employers that have treated unlawful termination claims as a predictable, mostly financial exposure should reassess that assumption, because it is now harder to avoid
Global IP Protection Strategy FAQ My blog post yesterday, Global IP Protection: Why You Need a Strategy, Not Just an Application generated a lot of questions. In an attempt to answer those we received (and those we anticipate receiving), I give you the below FAQs. If you are manufacturing abroad, expanding internationally, or selling through
Global IP Protection Strategy When brands think about protecting their intellectual property abroad, they often start with the most visible tasks: filing a trademark application, registering a patent, or sending a takedown notice to deal with a specific infringement. Those steps matter. On their own, though, they are tactical steps. They can be necessary, but
Why International Arbitration Is the Cornerstone of Modern Global Risk Management The Global Business Reality: Cross-Border Disputes Destroy Deals Imagine a multinational manufacturer that spends almost five years caught in a foreign court system trying to recover a 2.5 million-dollar debt. By the time the case has crawled through local procedure and appeals, the company
High End Manufacturing Integrators: The Pros and Cons for Companies That Cannot Afford Mistakes Why Companies Are Turning to Manufacturing Integrators Companies that build sophisticated products tend to face the same pattern of problems. Overseas factories offer attractive pricing, but their incentives rarely match yours. Their priority is volume and machine utilization. Your priorities are
Ten IP Monetization Mistakes That Quietly Destroy Global Trademark Portfolio Value IP deals rarely fail because someone forgot to file a trademark. They fail because of small operational gaps that compound over time. The ten mistakes below directly erode valuation, licensing leverage, and your ability to survive diligence. Why IP Monetization Fails In Practice Deals
Beyond China and Why You Need a Central Trademark/IP Hub What we’re seeing as companies diversify beyond China In recent years, a large chunk of our work has been helping long-term and new China clients shift manufacturing and supply chains to other parts of Asia, as well as to Latin America and Europe. As they
There are three keys to buying a Chinese brand: CNIPA-recorded IP, a China-enforceable supply contract, and distribution channel control.
Trump’s Asia Trip: What Changed in Law, What Didn’t, and How to Plan Your Supply Chain The short version President Trump’s trip produced three practical outcomes for companies that buy or sell internationally. First, the United States and Vietnam, and the United States and Thailand, announced trade deal frameworks that set baseline tariff rates and
Why It’s Usually Better to Sign a New Contract in China Than to Add an Amendment When working with Chinese manufacturers or other counterparties, foreign companies often ask our China business lawyers whether they can amend an existing contract instead of signing a new one. On paper, an amendment sounds efficient. In practice, it usually
