China’s intellectual property tribunals are growing more sophisticated and taking infringement claims seriously. But even as more companies go to court, fresh challenges to enforcing IP rights are emerging. Hong Kong partner Loke-Khoon Tan offers a status report on IP protection in the world’s largest market.
Thailand has become the 142nd country to accede to the Patent Cooperation Treaty which enables inventors to file a single patent application for multiple countries, including the US, China and India, and for foreign manufacturers to streamline patent protection in Thailand. Bangkok partner Sayumporn Sujintaya explains.
French competition law does not ban exclusivity agreements, but companies can still run afoul of the law if the way such agreements are negotiated, structured or renewed limits competition, as the French Football Association and its marketing partner, Sportfive, recently learned.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement is targeting 1,000 companies involved in critical infrastructure related to public safety and national security in a new audit program. Washington partner Carl Hampe notes, ICE often asks for information companies are not legally required to produce without a subpoena.
The Paris Court of Appeal has thrown out EUR45.4 million in fines initially imposed by the French Competition Council against 14 luxury cosmetics companies, saying France’s Conseil de la Concurrence (Competition Council) violated their rights when it waited nearly five years to inform the defendants of price-fixing charges. Read more about this surprising ruling.
Malaysia has revised its Automotive Policy to attract foreign investments and hasten integration into the global market. Changes include lifting a freeze on manufacturing licenses and expanded tax exemptions. Kuala Lumpur partners Adeline Wong, Brian Chia and Chew Kherk Ying report.
Amendments to Poland’s Telecommunications Law have increased consumer protection against service provider abuses. Warsaw partner Marek Rosinski outlines the new requirements for service providers and the additional powers given to government regulators.
A SGD1.7 million fine against 16 regional bus operators for price-fixing suggest that a “honeymoon” period for enforcement of Singapore’s 2006 competition law is over. As Singapore principals Ai Ai Wong and Ken Chia report, two dozen investigations are under way.
Sweden is actively promoting the establishment of an EU eHealth system to improve the safety and security of patients receiving treatment in EU member states. Stockholm partner Anders Fast explains the proposed system and its benefits.
The EU has expanded its ecodesign regulations governing the manufacture and import of electrical or electronic products. London partner Graham Stuart explains the new rules and their implications, and identifies steps companies can take to ensure compliance.
For the first time, Japan’s Fair Trade Commission has fined non-Japanese participants in a cartel, sending a clear signal to foreign companies that they can be pursued for anti-competitive conduct under a broader definition of what constitutes “Japanese sales.”
New antitrust laws introduce stiffer penalties, grant immunity to whistleblowers denouncing cartels and give Chilean competition authorities more intrusive investigative powers. Santiago lawyers Antonio Ortuzar Sr. and Alberto Vergara explain this major shift in public policy.
With its first casinos set to open next year, Singapore has passed a law barring welfare recipients and undischarged bankrupts from visiting them. The Casino Control Act also clarifies how revenues will be computed on various games for tax purposes, our Singapore principals report.
Uzbekistan has adopted new laws and criminal penalties aimed at curtailing the production, import and sale of counterfeit, defective and illegal medicines. Moscow partner Alexey Trusov reports.
China’s State Administration for Industry and Commerce has been given authority to recommend punishment for public affairs executives and organizations who restrict business competition, investigate anti-competitive activism and sanction non-compliance with document requests, explain lawyers from our China offices.
Distributors of “high risk” products, such as eyeliners or toothpaste, must submit a list of ingredients to health authorities before putting products on the market in Singapore if the products contain ingredients restricted under the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive, reports principal Andy Leck.
New implementation rules for China’s amended patent laws clarify transition issues and, for the first time, make it possible to pursue patent enforcement actions based on offers to sell infringing goods. Hong Kong partner Joseph Simone and special counsel Jing He report.
A new French “accreditation scale” rewards reliable, low-risk importers and exporters with streamlined customs procedures, allowing for faster market entry of their goods. Paris partner Therese-Anne Amy explains how the system works.
The Belgian government is requiring drug companies to test with users the clarity, readability and ease of use of the information they provide to patients, and adapt the materials based on what they find. Brussels counsel Annabelle Bruyndonckx reports.
In one of the first contributory trademark and copyright infringement cases to result in statutory damages, a jury has ordered to two US web hosting companies to pay LVMH USD32.4 million for enabling the sale of counterfeit Louis Vuitton bags. New York partners Pamela Church and Marcella Ballard report.
If you want to use a shape mark to define your brand, be sure to educate the public about the mark if you want to protect it in Australia. Sydney partner Ross McLean offers a cautionary tale about one chocolatier’s costly fight over a seahorse.
China health authorities have announced the first part of the country’s new Essential Drug List and a set of regulations designed to improve the efficiency of drug manufacturing, procurement and prescription under the nation’s major healthcare reform program. China partner Winston Zee and special counsel Andrew Chiu report.
Since the enactment of its first competition law package in 1996, Russia law has made significant progress towards unification with competition legislation in the developed countries. With the recent enactment of what are called the “second anti-monopoly package of laws,” the Russian Anti-Monopoly Agency has begun to transition to being an active industry regulator. Partners Marat Mouradov and Ivan Smirnov explain the new laws and what they mean.
Foreign multinationals selling goods or services in China should review new guidance on what constitutes monopolistic practices when developing pricing strategies. Our China partners explain that the policies apply to actions taken both inside and outside the country.
State sales tax laws aimed at capturing revenue from Internet sales are growing in the US even as they are being challenged in court. Companies that rely on internet sales are caught between a rock and a hard place in deciding how to respond, reports Chicago partner Theodore Bots.
Malaysia is moving toward tighter regulation of the practice of traditional medicines with new registration requirements for practitioners and the creation of a new regulatory council. Kuala Lumpur partner Chew Kherk Ying explains.
New rules require foreign producers of essential drugs to comply with Russia’s pricing regulations and tell the government how much they charge for the drugs in other countries. Our Russian pharmaceutical and healthcare partners report.
Colombia has adopted a new competition regime that extends the review period for merger control decisions, increases penalties for violations and offers leniency for those who bring violations to the government’s attention. Bogota partner Maria Carolina Pardo Cuellar reports.
Companies that sell goods or services or interests in land to consumers in Australia would need to review their approach to contracting with consumers and the terms of their contacts under legislation designed to regulate terms in consumer contracts, reports Sydney partner Penny Ward.
Producers of “borderline” medical products — drug-delivery products and medical devices incorporating ancillary substances or ancillary human blood derivative — should review new EC guidance to determine the correct route for regulatory approval required to market their products. London associate Julia Gillert and trainee solicitor Lucy Knight report.
Today’s difficult financial climate is compelling companies to defer accounts payable, optimize cash flow, cut costs to improve financial efficiency, as well as promote sales to keep revenues at desired levels. Partner Arseny Seidov looks at upfront discount mechanisms and incentive payments that companies could apply in the Russian market.
In China, some contracts require government approval, but it was unclear whether refusing to ask for approval was bad faith subject to damage claims. The Supreme People’s Court has clarified this and other contract law issues, as Hong Kong partner Andrew Aglionby explains in two reports.
A new treaty promoting economic cooperation among ASEAN states provides protection for investors and mechanisms for settling investor-state disputes before the ICSID or by ad hoc arbitration, reports Singapore principal Tan Chuan Thye.
Civil Justice Reforms in Hong Kong are encouraging parties to use mediation and ADR, and could expose those who resist to sanctions, lawyer in our China office explain.
Two recent court decisions illustrate the difficulties of enforcing rights to well known trade marks in Malaysia in the absence of legislative or judicial recognition of the concept of dilution, our Singapore IP principals report.
Asking for certain information when handling credit card purchases can expose retailers to class-action lawsuits in the US. Partner Lothar Determann reports, it pays to know the rules — and make sure your employees do, too — when handling consumer transactions.
All operators in the supply chain are now responsible for toy safety in the European Community. Our International Trade Compliance lawyers report that those selling toys under their own name or modifying them in ways that affect safety assume manufacturer’s liability.
China's 10-year plan to reshape its healthcare system will create both challenges and opportunities for many players in the healthcare industry, as Hong Kong special counsel Andrew Chiu explains.
China’s comprehensive new food safety law toughens standards for producing, selling, processing, inspecting, advertising and recalling food products. Producers, distributors, exporters and importers face increased product liability and severe sanctions for non-compliance, as lawyers in our China offices explain.
A dozen EU countries are preparing to add an "unsafe driving” symbol on medicine packaging to help reduce traffic accidents. Barcelona partner Montserrat Llopart reports that Spain has begun examining products likely to be affected.
Companies bidding for projects financed by the US government’s stimulus package need to be alert to “Buy American” provisions that limit what products they may use, Washington Trade partner Michael E. “Ted” Murphy reports.
New rules for registering licensing agreements in Russia make it possible for any party to such agreements file for registration. All applicationsmust be in Russian, and there are other new requirements, report partners Eugene Arievich and Margarita Divina.