Chinese language contracts are key

Silly Rabbit, Only the Chinese Language Matters in Your China Contract

The Chinese Portion of Your Contract is What Matters One of the most common trix employed by Chinese companies against American and European companies is fooling the American/European company into believing that the English version of their contract actually matters. My law firm’s China lawyers often see this from companies that come to us for

international compliance lawyers

China MOUs and LOIs: Use Them at YOUR Peril

I was recently emailing with a reporter regarding how Memoranda of Understanding, (MOU) and Letters of Intent (LOIs) are so different in China than in the United States/Britain and how that difference often causes early discord between Chinese and American companies. We started the discussion by talking about the differences in the meaning of Memoranda

International due diligence checklist

China Distributor Relationships: A Smart Choice in Today’s Geopolitical Climate

China Distributor Relationships Make Sense, Especially Now My law firm’s China lawyers  have written more product distribution agreements in the last three years than in the ten years prior. This is happening because foreign companies want to profit from China’s consumer and industrial markets, but they are wary of going into the country in a

ProtectingYourProductFromChina:The

What You Need to Know About China NNN Agreements

Virtually every Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) our China lawyers see is defective. One of the things that most frequently makes them defective is that they call for disputes to be resolved in a U.S. court. The problem is that Chinese courts do not enforce US court judgments and so even if the American company prevails

China trademark lawyer

The China Trademarks You Need

In 1995, a Chinese company registered the name Ai Ma Shi, which is what Chinese call Hermès. Hermes has for a long time sought to take away the Chinese company’s trademark registration of Ai Ma Shi and secure it for itself. Chinese courts have consistently ruled against Hermès and a Chinese court did so again

China visas

How to Change Your China Employer AND Keep Your China Work Permit

Switching Employers in China and Keeping Your Work Permit China’s faltering economy has led to job losses for Chinese citizens and foreigners alike and my law firm has been seeing an increasing volume of emails from foreign employees seeking legal assistance regarding their China work permits. Navigating employer switches in China requires preparation and —

Three Steps to Forming a China WFOE

How to Form a Company (WFOE) in China

Though we often talk generally about what it takes to form a company in China, a loyal reader recently wrote to point out that we have never set out the basic steps one must take to do so. The following sets out the basic steps foreigners usually must take to form a Wholly Foreign Owned

When to register your China Trademark

China Legal Issues for Business: The Ten Minute Version

I spoke yesterday at the 2010 U.S. China Business Conference in Atlanta. I was tasked with talking about the legal issues American businesses face in China and the legal issues Chinese businesses face in the United States. I was given ten minutes. The below is my speech: I am going to be talking about the

china law blog

China Representative Offices: Getting Started

China Represenative Offices Why Representative Offices in China Seldom Make Sense I am always saying that for every 100 China WFOEs and Joint Ventures my law firm helps set up in China, it does one representative office. Why so few, when it is generally agreed that representative offices are the easiest type of offices for