Recent Insights ...
China’s Fair Competition Review Regulations come into effect on 1 August 2024 - 1 July 2024
The new Fair Competition Review Regulations issued by the State Council on 6 June 2024 will come into effect on 1 August 2024 …
China’s Supreme Court Issues Judicial Interpretations for Antitrust Civil Cases - 27 June 2024
On June 24, 2024, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) issued the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court of Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Monopoly Civil Cases ...
China’s Supreme Court Looks at Plant Variety Rights Dispute Between Limagrain and Jinyuan - 26 June 2024
On 26 April 2024, the Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People’s Court publicly heard the appeal case concerning plant variety rights infringement ...
China’s Mid-Year 618 Sales Event: Imported Goods Rise in Popularity - 23 June 2024
The 618 sales event, often called the “618 Mid-Year Shopping Festival” is a major shopping event in China held around June 18 every year, similar to Black Friday in the United States. Initially launched by JD.com ...
China Issues Draft Guidelines for Identifying Sensitive Personal Information for Comment - 21 June 2024
On June 11, 2024, the Secretariat of the National Information Security Standardization Technical Committee released, in draft, “Guidelines for Network Security Standards Practice—Guidelines for Identifying Sensitive Personal Information” for comment ...
China Trade Secret Case Sees Record Damages - Geely vs. WM Motor - 21 June 2024
On June 14, 2024, the Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People’s Court announced the final ruling in a high-stakes legal battle on the intellectual property dispute where Geely, one of the largest and most innovative automakers in China ...
China’s Visa Exemption Policy Extended to 14 Countries - 19 June 2024
During his mid-June 2024 visit to the Australasia, Chinese Premier, Li Qiang, confirmed that New Zealand and Australia would be included in its list of unilateral visa-free countries ...
China's Regulation of Generative AI Technology in 2024 - 14 June 2024
This article provides a timely analysis of China's current regulatory framework for Generative AI technology, as well as recent case law developments in the area ...
China Issues Announcement on Export Controls for Aerospace-Related Items - 8 June 2024
On 30 May 2024, the Ministry of Commerce, General Administration of Customs, and Equipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission issued Announcement No. 21 of 2024, commencing operation on 1 July 2024 ...
China Issues Interim Unfair Competition Regulation for “Internet Industry” - 2 June 2024
On 11 May 2024, China’s SAMR released the Interim Unfair Competition Regulation in the Internet Industry which will come into effect on 1 September 2024 ...
Australia: Law Society Issues Guidance Note on the Use of AI by Lawyers and Law Firms - 31 May 2024
In May 2024, the Queensland Law Society issued its first ever Guidance Note on the use of AI systems by lawyers and law firms ...
China’s CNIPA Releases List of Trademark Opposition and Invalidation Cases for Guidance - 30 May 2024
On 13 May 2024, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) published ten trademark opposition and invalidation cases from 2023 in the China Intellectual Property News …
IP Australia Moves to Madrid List of Goods and Services - 14 May 2024
Earlier this year, IP Australia announced that it was planning on moving away from its own List of Goods and Services for trade mark applications, and adopting the List of Goods and Services used by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) when examining International Registration applications. In late March 2024, this new categorisation system went live ...
Beijing Internet Court Issues Judgement in First AI Voice Infringement Case - 1 May 2024
On April 23, 2024, the Beijing Internet Court passed judgment on the first AI voice infringement case in China. The case involved the application ...
China: Capital Contribution Provisions of the New Company Law - 26 April 2024
China's new Company Law will come into force on 1 July 2024. The law will change many aspects of how companies are set up and run in China, including how capital contributions are made, and when ...
China's IP Administration Issues Draft Measures for Illegal Turnover Calculations for Trademark Administrative Actions - 19 April 2024
On 11 April 2024, to unify law enforcement standards for administrative actions, the CNIPA published draft Measures for “Calculating the Illicit Business Revenue of Trademark Infringement Cases” for public comment ...
China Releases List of Typical Cases of Seed/PVR Protection - 17 April 2024
On March 17, 2024, the Supreme People’s Court of China (the SPC) released a new batch of typical cases regarding the seed industry’s intellectual property protection ...
Australia: Full Federal Court Looks at International Trade Mark Infringement Settlement Agreement - 14 April 2024
In the case of Redbubble Ltd v Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation (Australia) Pty Ltd [2024] FCAFC 15, the Full Federal Court of Australia reviewed the applicability of a US based trade mark infringement settlement agreement between the Hells Angels US entity and a US entity (TP Apparel) that was acquired by Redbubble ...
Expedition Requests for Trademark Matters in China – Twelve months On - 10 April 2024
Many IP Offices around the world, have expedition request procedures in place for certain types of IP cases. For obvious reasons, expeditions need to be limited in some way, or most would seek expedition of their cases. China, consistent with international standards, issued guidelines in March 2023, discussing when it will allow the expedition of trademark matters, such as assignments, licensing and renewals. Twelve months on, it is great to see that this system is working reasonably well ...
China: Analysis of the Provisions on Promoting and Regulating Cross-border Data Flow - 5 April 2024
On March 22, 2024, the Cyberspace Administration of China issued the Provisions on Promoting and Regulating Cross-border Flow of Data, relaxing controls over some types of data, to the relief of many ...
China Antitrust - New Thresholds for Notification of Concentrations of Undertakings - 8 March 2024
On 26 January 2024, the State Council issued Decree No. 773, promulgating the Provisions of the State Council on Thresholds for Prior Notification of Concentrations of Undertakings (the “New Thresholds for Notification”), which came into effect on the same day ...
Beijing Court Protects Unregistered SPARBAR from SPARTECH Based on “Prior Use” - Article 15.2 of the Trademark Law - 3 July 2024
On February 19, 2024, the Beijing IP Court issued a case study on its official website and introduced a case that protects a UK sports brand, “SPARBAR”, even though it is unregistered in China ...
An Analysis of China’s Foreign Investment Security Review Measures - 1 July 2024
The regulatory landscape in China regarding foreign investment is gradually being established and refined, aiming to balance the benefits of foreign investment with the necessity of safeguarding national security ...
Australian Work and Holiday Program Initiatives for Mainland China, India, and Vietnam - 28 June 2024
At the beginning of June 2024, the Department of Home Affairs and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia has announced new details regarding the Work and Holiday program initiatives for nationals of Mainland China, India, and Vietnam ...
Beijing Issues Judicial Guidance on Hot Issues Concerning Employee Reinstatement - 25 June 2024
On 30 April 2024, the Beijing High People’s Court and the Beijing Labor and Personnel Dispute Arbitration Committee, jointly issued Answers regarding employee reinstatement and a number of other hot topics ...
Beijing to Implement New Foreign Investment Policy - 14 June 2024
On 31 May 2024, the Regulation on Foreign Investment for Beijing was adopted by the Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People’s Congress dealing with cross-border data flow, intellectual property protection, policy formulation, government compliance with contracts and commitments, and government-enterprise communication mechanisms …
China Issues Requirements for Managing Minor’s Online Game Service Consumption - 7 June 2024
On 28 May 2024, the China Internet Association released the “Draft Requirements for Managing Minor’s Online Game Service Consumption”, marking the first industry-specific guidelines for managing and refunding minor’s consumption in online games ...
China Issues Guiding Opinions for the Regulation of Online Auctions - 29 May 2024
On 22 May 2024, to regulate the online auction market further and promote high-quality development of the auction industry, the State Administration for Market Regulation, Ministry of Commerce, and State Administration of Cultural Heritage have jointly issued the Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Standardized and Healthy Development of Online Auctions ...
Major Adjustments to Service Invention Inventor Rewards in the Revised Implementing Regulations of the PRC Patent Law - 28 May 2024
The third revision of the Implementing Regulations of the PRC Patent Law (the Revised Regulations) was issued by China’s State Council on 11 December 2023, and commenced operation on 20 January 2024 ...
China Issues “2024 Plan for Promoting Intellectual Property Power” - 22 May 2024
On 11 May 2024, the Office of the Inter-Ministerial Joint Conference on the Construction of an Intellectual Property Power that consists of 29 governmental departments and agencies and is organized by the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), released the 2024 Plan for Promoting Intellectual Property Power ...
IP Australia Issues its IP Report for 2024 - 24 May 2024
On May 21, 2024, the IP Australia issued its Australian IP Report 2024. The report contains heplful statistics provding an insight into filing programs for IP rights such as patents, trade marks and plant breeders rights ...
China’s Supreme Court Requires Courts to Search Case Database when Adjudicating Cases - 14 May 2024
On 7 May 2024, the Supreme People’s Court issued the Work Procedures for the Building and Operation of the Case Database of the People’s Courts (the Procedures), commencing operation on 8 May 2024. This critical document …
China Releases New Anti-Monopoly Compliance Guide for Undertakings - 8 May 2024
On 25 April 2024, China's Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Commission of the State Council released its revised Anti-monopoly Compliance Guide for Undertakings ...
HKIAC Releases New Arbitration Rules - 7 May 2024
With the aim of improving efficiency, security and integrity of arbitration proceedings, the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (“HKIAC”) has just released its updated Arbitration Rules ...
China to Open Value-Added Telecommunications Businesses to Foreign Investment - 30 April 2024
On 10 April 2024, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the Circular on the Pilot Work of Expanding the Openness of Value-added Telecommunications Businesses ...
Australia: A new competition law merger control regime - 15 April 2024
On 10 April 2024, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced that the highly anticipated outline of a new competition law merger control regime was to be released. Later that day, the Federal Treasurer released further details as outlined ...
China - Court Decides Artificial Intelligence Generated Content Infringes Copyright - 26 March 2024
On 8 February 2024, China’s Guangzhou Internet Court (“Court”) issued a judgment (2024) Yue 0192 Civil Judgment of First Instance No. 113, which is considered to be one of the world’s first court issued judgments on copyright infringement of artificial intelligence-generated content …
China’s SAMR Issues Draft Regulations Regarding Registered Capital for Public Comment - 21 February 2024
On 6 February 2024, the PRC State Administration for Market Regulation issued the draft of Provisions of the State Council on the Implementation of the PRC Company Law on the Registration of Registered Capital Management System for public comments by 5 March 2024 ...
China Issues New Regulations for Collective and Certification Trademarks - 12 January 2024
On 29 December 2023, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) issued the Regulations on the Management of the Collective Trademark and Certification Trademark ..
Australia: Big Mac v. Big Jack - Trade Mark Infringement or not - Federal Court of Australia - 10 January 2024
In recent months, a high-profile intellectual property case has unfolded in Australia, involving the fast-food giants McDonald's and Hungry Jack's. The dispute centred around McDonald’s well known Big Mac trade mark ...
China’s MIIT Issues Draft AI Development Standards Guidelines - 23 January 2024
On 17 January 2024, the PRC Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued the draft “Guidelines for the Development of a Comprehensive System of National Industrial Standards for Artificial Intelligence” (the Draft Guidelines) for public comments by 31 January 2024 …
Latest Amendments to China’s Law on Guarding State Secrets - 1 March 2024
The second revision of the Law on Guarding State Secrets was passed on 27 February 2024 broadening the scope of its application by adding 11 new articles and modifying 33 articles to varying degrees ...