Tag Archives: company law

Is Interest on Securities to be Repurchased in Excess of 24% Annual Interest Rate Valid? – Ma v Yang Securities Repurchase Contract Case

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(By Bai Lituan)Securities repurchase is a financial activity of raising funds by selling securities and meanwhile signing an agreement with the buyer to repurchase the same securities at the agreed price and time. There are not many securities repurchase cases because it is not long ago that people in our country began to raise funds in this way. The first case decided by the Shanghai Finance Court is Oriental Securities v Honggao Zhongtai Securities Repurchase case.

Securities repurchase contract related laws mainly include the Securities Law, the Company Law, the minutes of meetings of the Supreme People’s Court on securities repurchase cases and the Notice on Restating Several Issues Connected with Further Standardizing Securities Repurchase Activities published by the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the China Securities Regulatory Commission. All securities repurchase cases courts are dealing with come from the main, small and medium sized business and startup boards. My search result shows no securities repurchase cases relating to the new OTC board (the national share transfer system for small and medium sized businesses).

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China Laws and Regulations Update in April 2019

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1.The Trademark Law of the People’s Republic of China

Co-promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress

Promulgation date: 23 April 2019

Implementation date: 1 November 2019

The main contents of this amendment are: 1. new regulations on bad faith registration: refusal of trademark registration applications for a purpose other than use of the trademark and including “trademark registration applications for a purpose other than use of the trademark” as a valid reason for claiming trademark opposition or invalidity; 2. giving more serious punishment for infringement of proprietary rights in the trademark by increasing the multiple used to calculate the amount of damages for a malicious infringement of proprietary rights in the trademark from larger than one but smaller than three to larger than one but smaller than five and increasing the upper limit on legal damages from RMB three million to RMB five million. (Source: Website of the National People’s Congress)

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Responsibilities of “Old” Company Founders for Capital Contributions

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(By Tian Shanshan) The Chinese Company Law and legal interpretations thereof provide that founders are responsible for paying in full their capital contributions. However, should founders of a company be responsible for paying in full their capital contributions if the company was established before the Company Law 2005 took effect, the first law setting forth responsibilities of a company’s founders for paying in full their capital contributions? Another issue in this case is how to define the founder’s responsibilities and protect the creditors’ interests. Legal authorities didn’t deal with this issue in the same way.

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An Analysis on Chinese and Foreign Entrepreneurs’ Equity Disposal Options

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(By Wang Qiurui) Selfishness is nature of human beings and difficult to get rid of, out of which a problem arises that employees and even high-level managerial staff of a company care much more about their own interest than the company’s rise and fall when dealing with managerial issues. Adam Smith raised a question related to such problem in his masterpiece the Wealth of Nations, known as ‘Smith’s Difficult Question’.

Many past and living Chinese and foreign entrepreneurs have turned to equity to find a way of thinking a solution to overcome such weakness of human beings. However, being governed by the current Company Law of P.R.China, settlement of a case in such a way would give rise to many legal issues. It should be more advisable for Chinese entrepreneurs to create and apply to their businesses a phantom equity system.

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A Brief Analysis of the 2013 Amendment to the China Company Law

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(By Yu ZhiYuan) On 28 December 2013, the decision on amending the previous company law was promulgated by the National People’s Congress. The amendment this time will concentrate solely on changing the corporate capital system dramatically in the following three ways. First, the registered capital to-be-paid-in system will be launched. Second, the minimum registered capital will no longer be required. Third, the maximum proportion of intangible assets to the total registered capital will no longer be required. Obviously the amendment was made as a response of legislative authorities to the resolutions approved at the Third Plenary Session of the Eighteenth Central Committee. This article provides an analysis and brief comments on the amendment.

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What’s the Difference in the 2014 version of Company’s Business License in China?

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(By You Yunting) Our previous post introduced that recently China revised the Company Law. All Company’s business license will be changed in China to cooperate with this revision. In today’s post, we would like to introduce some leading reform measures in Shanghai and Guangdong Province which will be implemented all over the China. The following are the differences between the 2014 version of Company’s business license and the preceding one.

  1. All companies shall renew its new business license

The prosperous coastal regions in China will fully renew its business license of commercial registration Since January 1, 2014. Enterprises registered in Shanghai and Guangdong province shall renew its business license before December 31, 2013. Failure to renew its business license will be fined.

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

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(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.

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How to Protect Trade Secrets When a Shareholder want to Inquiry Company’s Account Book?

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(By You Yunting and Wang Ting) Pursuant to China’s Company Law, any shareholder shall be entitled to inspect and copy the Articles of association, minutes of shareholders’ meetings, resolutions of meetings of the board of directors, resolutions of meetings of the board of supervisors and financial reports of a company in which he or she owns shares. However, if a shareholder operates a business in competition with a company in which he or she owns stocks, then when exercising the shareholder’s right to information, such inspection may result in leaks of confidential business and trade secrets. In today’s post, we will introduce this conflict, and discuss ways in accordance with relevant Chinese laws to balance this conflict of interests while maintaining a shareholder’s right to information and a business’ right to protect its trade secrets.

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How to Acquire the Trademarks of Companies Whose Business Have Been Canceled or Whose Licenses Have Been Revoked in China?

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By Albert Chen

Trademark assignees may sometimes encounter an awkward situation: the target trademark is in the hands of a company that has had its business license revoked or that has been cancelled. Although the trademark is still valid, others seem to have no legitimate means to acquire it. So, under these circumstances, does the assignee really have no means to acquire the trademark? In today’s post, you will find the answer.

I. Why would trademarks be left unused?

According to relevant statistics, the average life of Chinese companies is seven years, and the average of life of privately owned companies is only 2.9 years. On the other hand, however, the validity period of a trademark is ten years, and there is nothing in Chinese law that states that the trademark shall automatically become invalid when the business license of its holder is revoked or the company is cancelled. Especially when the business license has been revoked, the company still has legal capacity. It is merely incapable of conducting civil acts, including the use and transfer of trademarks, because its business license or chop has been announced invalid or has been confiscated under the punishment of business license revocation.

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Tips for Share Contribution with Copyright in China

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By Luo Yanjie

Recently, Shanghai Laofengxiang Gift Company finished registration at Huangpu branch of industrial and commercial administration. The company is established by Shanghai Laofengxiang Company and ARTURO UGO DI MODICA , the designer of ” Wall Street financial bull”,” the Bund financial bull”. ARTURO UGO DI MODICA invests the company by the copyright of “the Bund financial bull” which is evaluated 4100000 yuan. This is the first foreign company invested by copyright inShanghai.

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Introduction on the Regulations concerning the Capital Contribution in IPR or Domain Name in China

Highlight: The contribution of capital in IPR or domain name is permitted by China Company Law, though there regulates the proportion limitation on it. Bridge IP Commentary will introduce you the regulations of the investment in IPR.

Recently, a Company registered in Shanghai made its contribution of the 70% of the total registered capital of the company with domain name, which has been evaluated to be RMB 10 million yuan, and it has been the first company which made its capital contribution in domain name.

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