How Can the Double Wages Payment Provision be Misused In China?

(By You Yunting) In order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of laborers and to avoid enterprises failing to conclude a labor contract with laborers, China’s Labor Contract Law stipulates that, where an employing unit fails to conclude a written labor contract with a laborer that has provided labor services for more than one month but less than one year, it shall pay double wages payment to the laborer each month.

In practice, however, many enterprises found this stipulation being misused. To achieve double wages payment, some laborers intentionally failed to conclude the written labor contract with their employing units and then brought the employing units to labor arbitrations claiming for double wages payment. In our post, we would like to introduce a typical case where a laborer in charge of human resources who deliberately did not conclude a labor contract with its enterprise is supported by the courts to receive double wages payment after their departure. Foreign investors who do business in China should be aware of this potential labor risk.

READ MORE

How to Ascertain a Director’s Liability in Chinese Bankruptcy Liquidation?

(By You Yunting and Wang Ting) With many foreign investors establishing enterprises in China, there are many successful examples as well as the inevitable examples of failure. Bad management may lead an enterprise to eventual failure. In the situation where an enterprise goes bankrupt due to poor management, even an individual foreigner, playing the role as a director or senior officer, may have to assume personal liability. Such liability may arise from either civil or criminal laws. Today, we will discuss what kinds of liabilities directors may assume in bankruptcy liquidation.

READ MORE

Could Audi Succeed in Applying for “SQ2”, “SQ4” and “Q9” Trademarks in Mainland China?

audi

(By Luo YanjieAbstract: A subsequently applied trademark must not be identical with or similar to a prior trademark. The trademark submitted for registration must have sufficient characteristics that allow it to be distinguishable. A few days ago, foreign media outlets reported that Audi had filed several trademarks application for model names, including SQ2, SQ4 and Q9. This is a sign that these vehicles will likely be sold in China in the future.

According to our research, further information about those trademarks is not yet available in Mainland China. This is likely either because Audi has not started the application procedures, or because the Trademark Office has not yet input Audi’s application information online. However, this does not affect our analysis on the outlook of those trademarks in mainland China.

READ MORE

Was Tencent’s Unverified Non-Competition Agreement Illegal?

(By You Yunting)  Abstract: Many of Tencent’s non-competition contracts, recently reported online are likely not real due to obvious invalidity. If the contracts were genuine, one might wonder about the intelligence and morality of Tencent’s managers and officers. These agreements are arrogant, domineering, selfish and largely ignorant of relevant laws. It is hard to imagine how these contracts could come from a listed company with billions of dollars. Additionally, Tencent could possibly be required to pay large amounts of compensation to departing employees in order to fully comply with the relevant laws.

READ MORE

Why NEXON’s BNB Failed to Accuse Tencent’s “QQ堂” of Copyright Infringement?

paop

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract:  The Copyright Law protects “expression” rather than “thought”. For the purposes of the Copyright Law, “works” refer to original intellectual creations in the literary, artistic and scientific domain, insofar as they are capable of being reproduced in a specific tangible form. Works without originality are not protected by these laws.

In recent years, there has been a serious plagiarism problem in the field of online games. Considering that online games act as computer software, laws protect its “code” other than game mode and method. The case in today’s post will elucidate this principle.

READ MORE

Why Only an Interested Party may File an Opposition to a Trademark Application in China

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: The new Trademark Law stipulates that only the interested party may file an opposition to a trademark application based on relevant grounds. Previous opposition proceedings were so complicated that the new Trademark Law removes the trademark opposition review proceedings completely, with the exception of the review period of twelve months.

Our Trademark Law has been revised many times since its inception in 1982. In August 2013, the National People’s Congress approved the latest revised Trademark Law. In today’s post, we will analyze and compare the two Trademark Laws from the standpoint of the revised opposition system.

READ MORE

Abuse of Internet keywords in Competitive Bidding may Constitute Trademark Infringement

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: Using another’s trademark as a promotion keyword in Baidu’s competitive bidding may constitute trademark infringement and unfair competition. The contents of “sale promotion (for others)” refer to providing advice, planning, promotion and consulting for others to sell goods or services, and does not include, in particular, enterprises whose main function is to sell goods, namely, activities of commercial enterprise.

   With the widespread use of Pay Per Click (the “PPC”) promotion, related legal problems also surface. In recent years, there are many trademark infringements regarding the bidding service of keyword PPC. The case in today’s post is a typical one considering the bidding service of keyword PPC as follows.

READ MORE

The Amendment to the Corporate Law of the People’s Republic of Law

Notice: On December 28, 2013, China adopted a new amendment to the Corporate Law which will come into force on March 1, 2014. Combining with our original 2005 version of the Corporate Law, Ms Wang translates the new amendment to the Corporate Law into English and posts it today. If anyone needs to reprint our translated revision on web, please note the following content on the reprint page: This amendment is translated by Bridge IP Law Commentary  http://www.chinaiplawyer.com.

 To help foreign friends better understanding of Chinese laws, today we would first publish a comparison between the 2005 version of the Corporate Law and the 2013 amendment.

READ MORE

How to Solve the Language Conflict between Foreign and Chinese-Language Trademarks?

资生堂

(By You Yunting) When applying for trademark registration in China, foreign companies are often puzzled by an issue arising out of a translation of a foreign trademark into Chinese being rejected by the Trademark Office due to a language conflict with some preexisting trademark. In our experience, however, if an applicant can prove to the court that its trademark won’t cause confusion with previously registered trademarks, there is a great chance of success in a foreign trademark ultimately being registered. As follows, we will introduce a case where a Chinese court supported the Japanese Shiseido Ltd. Co. in applying for registration of its BéNéFIQUE trademark.

READ MORE

Instructions of the National Copyright Administration on Finite Expression Method of Computer Software

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: The principle of computer software infringement primarily involves materially similarity and contact. The similar or identical software does not constitute copyright infringement if the available expression methods are finite. But the similar or identical software shall be a work produced respectively and independently, and shall not be a plagiarized or copied one of others’.

Software industry is the heart and soul of the information industry and plays a crucial role in a country’s economic development all over the world. It is of great significance of setting clear standards on the protection scope of computer software and on the judgment of the software copyright infringement to protect the software industry. In today’s post, we will introduce a common problem in software infringement whether finite expression methods constitute an infringement or not, and an instruction of the National Copyright Administration on this problem for the following.

READ MORE

Is Evasi0n 7.0 Illegal to Install Software for iOS Jailbreak Device?

evad3rs

(By You Yunting) Recently, Evad3rs released a new jailbreak tool called Evasi0n7.0 for Apple’s iOS 7 with Chinese name “太极7”. Due to Evasi0n 7.0 forcing Chinese jailbreak users to the default installation of TaiG app store in China, all public opinions on domestic Internet websites are criticism-oriented and most reports stated that Evasi0n 7.0 was a counterfeit software tool.

The principal Pod2g of Evad3rs team today expressed his opinions on Twitter that Evad3rs have decided to remotely disable the default installation of TaiG app store in China for further investigations on the piracy issue. As an intellectual property lawyer, I paid great attention to this issue. I hope this post has broached several legal problems as follows.

READ MORE

Should An Enterprise Change its Enterprise Name that Infringed a Registered Trademark in China?

巴黎春天

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: Marks that only bear the generic names, devices, or model numbers of the goods shall not be registered as trademarks. This restriction was just limited the generic names of the same goods. Trademark right is a unified national right all over the China and shall be under equal protection. In practice, for an act of an enterprise name infringing a registered trademark, the court may make a comprehensive judgment of different kinds of infringement liabilities.

With regard to some well-known brands, an act of using another’s well-known brand as an enterprise name is a typical infringement manner, which annoys the right holder. In today’s post, we’d like to introduce and share a typical case that the infringing party was finally convicted of infringement by the courts and ordered to stop using its enterprise name for the following.

READ MORE

China’s Courts won’t Prohibit a Trademark Squatting with Post-Approval

古珀行

(By Luo Yanjie) Abstract: “Agent” in conduct of Agent’s preemptive registration refers to “trademark agents, representatives or other agents and representatives based on sales and agency relationship such as distribution and agency”. Commodities that no agent or representative may apply for registration include commodities same as the commodities where the trademarks of the principals or the persons represented are attached to as well as other similar commodities. Considering trademark is a private right, judicial institutions shall fully respect parties’ autonomy.

READ MORE

How Mobile Game Protects its Intellectual Property Right?

捕鱼达人

(By You Yunting) Recently stock markets have heightened topics about mobile game and serious competition disputes of intellectual property rights (the “IPR”) between China mobile games enterprises are often appeared in the newspapers. According to the reports, Beijing Chukong Inc., the developer of popular “捕鱼达人”(Fishing Joy) mobile games, was engaged in a controversy of IRP because earlier in December the Guangzhou-based SEALY Technology suspected Beijing Chukong Inc.’s “捕鱼达人”(Fishing Joy) of plagiarism on its arcade game product “捕鱼达人”. In response, Beijing Chukong Inc. alleged that: first, the online time of its “捕鱼达人”(Fishing Joy) was earlier than that of SEALY Technology and its mobile game had been reported to the Ministry of Culture. Second, Beijing Chukong Inc. owns the “捕鱼达人”trademark. Third, there are significant differences in art images and playing methods between two products.

READ MORE

Legal Basis for Chrysler Group’s Anti-dilution Protection on Its Well-known “JEEP” Trademark in China

jeep 商标

(By Luo Yanjie) Today we would like to introduce a typical case regarding Chrysler Group’s countering a subsequent “free-rider” who attempted to register “JEEP” trademark under Class 2 for oil paint through the anti-dilution legal protection on well-known trademarks.

Introduction to the Case:

             Plaintiff: Chrysler Group LLC (the “Chrysler”)

           Defendant: Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (the “Trademark Office”) and Guangdong-based Dongguan Xiehe Chemical Co., Ltd (the “Xiehe Chemical”)

READ MORE