Author: Alvis Xiong

CHINESE GOVERNMENT’S INTERAGENCY COORDINATION: WHAT THE SOCIAL CREDIT JOINT DISCIPLINARY-INCENTIVE MEASURES MOUS SHOW

Alvis Xiong

This draw shows that "being put on the blacklist, a dishonest person who refuse to pay salaries to workers, is denied for applying "government's fund, government purchasing, bigding qualification, production licence, qualification examination, bank loans, market license, tax priority, honors"

(This drawing shows that “being put on the blacklist, a dishonest person who refuse to pay salaries to workers, is denied for applying for”government’s fund, government purchasing, biding for government project, production license, qualification examination, bank loans, market license, tax priority, honors”, copyrighted at http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/2018-08/24/content_5318132.htm)

  1. INTRODUCTION

In China, interagency coordination at the level of the central government is a great challenge. A modern government faces complicated social issues and must divide the responsibility and create agencies for specific things. The government ordinarily creates related agencies to deal with the same or similar issues, while the task for each agency is part of a larger whole.[1]

This way, however, produces redundancy, inefficiency, gaps, and profound coordination challenges.[2]… Read the rest

Chinese Ecommerce Platforms’ Wide Retail Most-Favored-Nation Clauses

Ryan Zhu

In the e-commerce market, quite a few platform operators in China – such as JD, Gome, and PDD (PinDuoDuo) – require suppliers to accept a Wide Retail Most-Favored-Nation Clause (“RMFN Clause”).[1]This Clause requires suppliers to promise the platform that it will grant it equally favorable terms as granted to any other platform. VIP.COM,[2]the largest e-commerce platform in South China, also uses that Clause. This article shows the anti-competitive effects of RMFN clause gravely overwhelms the pro-competitive effects. In recent years, RMFNs have been scrutinized by the US Justice Department, the European Commission, as well as the national competition authorities of various EU member states.

China is the biggest E-commerce market in the world. However, … Read the rest

Shenzhen Takes Lead in Improving Antitrust Enforcement Transparency

Qu Gangyi

Qianhai Pilot Free Trade Zone (“Qianhai”), an innovative area in Shenzhen, aims to create an effective and more transparent antitrust enforcement mechanism.[1] Qianhai is seeking to serve as a role model for the country by improving the transparency of antitrust investigations. The Guidelines on Anti-monopoly Work (“Guideline”)[2] promulgated by the Qianhai Management Committee (“Committee”) is a big step towards achieving this goal.

This article, divided into five sections, provides an overview of how the Guideline improves antitrust transparency. Section One explains the problem of transparency of antitrust investigation in current laws and practices. The next three sections articulate three important institutional reforms in the Guideline: clarifying investigation authority and the process before investigation, … Read the rest

New Developments in Statutory Damages for Patent Infringement in China

NI Xiang

  1. Introduction

A statutory damages system is indispensable to intellectual property protection in China. A draft of Shenzhen’s local government legislation, the “Regulations on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights of Shenzhen Special Economic Zones” sparked many discussions in China’s intellectual property law community because of its proposal of maximum damages of 5 million yuan in cases where the proceeds of infringement are difficult to determine.[1] Commentators praised the draft as the most stringent intellectual property protection regulation in Chinese history. However, the proposal was not included in the final legislation issued in early January 2019.[2] The reason may be that a new approach is stipulated in the draft of the Fourth Amendment of Patent Law, issued … Read the rest

Luohu Model: Introduction to Shenzhen’s Medical Reforms

Ru Qian*          

Responding to the social needs and central government policies, the Shenzhen government created and implemented some pilot measures in the new round of nationwide medical reform.1 They were together combined into the Luohu Model of medical reform and legislatively confirmed in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Medical Regulations (Regulation), which is considered to be the “basic law” of Shenzhen’s medical industry.2

This blogpost introduces the specific measures of the Luohu Model, and two crucial provisions of the Regulation:

Article 9 requires functions of different levels of institutions be reasonably divided.

Article 19 reforms the measuring of costs and payment of medical funds.3

Such provisions solidified the pilot measures tried by the Luohu government, effected to … Read the rest

What do Shenzhen’s Draft Public Security Video Regulations mean for Privacy Rights?

Song Changlin*

 

This paper focuses on the protection of privacy rights under the Public Security Video Information System (Video System) in Shenzhen. Here, Video System refers to the CCTV used for the purposes of public security. Shenzhen is one of the most important cities in China and it has done much work in the construction of this System. Shenzhen has recently drafted the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Public Security Video Information System Management Regulations (Regulations)[1]. I will discuss whether the Regulations violates people’s privacy rights in Shenzhen. The first part introduces the development of the Video System, the second part introduces the relevant privacy law in China and the third part … Read the rest

Mandatory Disclosure of Third-Party Funding in International Arbitration

HU Yue

I. Introduction
Recent years have seen an upsurge in the number of third-party funded cases and the number of reported cases involving issues relating to third-party funding in international arbitrations. The existence of third-party funding in international arbitration can create potential arbitrator conflict of interest. A number of factors contribute to the concern about arbitrator conflict of interest: arbitrators may take ad hoc consultancy positions with some third-party funders (TPF), the symbiotic relationship between TPF and a small group of law firms, the relationship between law firms and some arbitrators, and the general calls for transparency.
As a result of the increased concern, third-party funding has increasingly drawn the attention of arbitral institutions and national legislatures. Many arbitral … Read the rest

Waking Up the Sleeping Giant of Copyright Protection for Digital Music in China

HU Meng

Less than ten years ago, China’s music copyright infringement rate was widely regarded as the highest in the world.[1]As a result, although it has the largest population in the world, in 2011 China only ranked 38 in the retail value of the music market.[2]However, after the tipping point in 2015, things have changed dramatically. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (“IFPI”) Global Music Report 2018, China’s ranking has been up to 10[3]. In spite of such impressive progress, China is like a giant who has just awoken. In 2016, the average music revenue per person in China was only 0.1 dollars. In the U.S, the number is 16.4 and … Read the rest

Rethinking the Territorial Jurisdiction of the Chinese Internet Courts

 

Zhou Qiang, President of the Supreme People's Court of China, at the inauguration scene of Hangzhou Internet Court

Zhou Qiang, President of the Supreme People’s Court, at the inauguration scene (photo ©Zhejiang News

Lin Yifu

Internet technology has brought challenges against the traditional rule of territorial jurisdiction, rethinking and reconstructing the rule of territorial jurisdiction is a must. Even though a plaintiff now can file a lawsuit over the internet without incurring considerable pre-paid traveling cost, the question becomes in which internet courts can plaintiff file the lawsuit.

This Note explores the issues of the territorial jurisdiction of the Internet Court in China. Beginning with the introduction of the Internet Courts in China, the history and the current development of Internet Courts are provided. Judicial provisions regarding the jurisdiction of Internet Courts are provided in this section … Read the rest

Can the Shenzhen New Model Residents’ Committee Prevent Domestic Violence?

Ye Yuyan

On October 24th 2018, while he was in Shenzhen, President Xi visited Beizhan community in the city’s Longhua District. He was very pleased to see what Longhua district had done to provide better services to residents.[1]

President Xi at Beizhan Community, Longhua District (photo ©Xinhua News

Even though the national Anti-Domestic Violence Law designates local residents’ committees as part of a broader system of organizations to prevent domestic violence[2], it does not specify how the committee can do the job. The Shenzhen model has demonstrated a possible way.

This article discusses how one district in Shenzhen has reformed its residents’ committees to be more efficient and professional in serving residents, along with its implications of … Read the rest