News

The volume of trademark applications in China has consistently been growing in the past 15 years. This growth, together with the fact that China is a first-to-file trademark system, has led to the proliferation of so-called ‘pre-emptive trademark applications’, filed in bad faith. Bad faith refers to the filing of a trademark that the applicant knows to have been used and developed by another brand. This is done with the intention of making a profit out of it, by selling the trademark back to the brand. Until now, the law made it easy for the so called “professional squatters” to file such...

In March 2019, for the first time a case on copycat design was ordered in favor of an overseas manufacturer. Since the rise of the Chinese vehicle-making industry, the nation's home brands have been accused of creating copycat vehicles that are almost like-for-like duplicates of popular models sold by international car-makers. However, local law has traditionally protected these Chinese brands in legal disputes, claiming that the designs are different enough to legally pass as their own models.

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), part of Tata Motors Ltd, sued Jiangling Motors Corp. Ltd. (JMC...

Starke Managing Counsel Daniel Albrecht received his second appointment as Guest Professor at March 19, 2019.

It’s an honor for him to serve as Professor in the future for the Union of Western and Eastern Education (UWEE) and as an Expert for the China Belt and Road International Talent Fund, connected to the China International Talent Exchange Foundation.

Starke Managing Counsel Daniel Albrecht gave an interview about the draft of the new Chinese Investment Law and the related "Negative List". He should refer as an expert whether the new Chinese investment law will protect foreign companies better in the future to prevent forced technology transfer. Read the interview: here

At 15th February Starke Managing Counsel Daniel Albrecht took part at the Breakfast-on with Nicolas Bideau, the Ambassador & Head of Presence Switzerland. The event of the SwissCham Beijing was hosted at Roof Café Swiss Chalet @ Parkview Green Hotel. It was an very informative presentation and fruitful discussion.

In 2011, Nicolas Bideau has been appointed head of Presence Switzerland (PRS). Presence Switzerland is competent for the image of Switzerland abroad, and implements the strategy of the Federal Council on Switzerland’s communication abroad. On the basis of the Federal...

Trademarks are used to distinguish the goods and services from different trademark owners. Trademarks are unique names, symbols, or logos which have distinctive characteristics.

Trademarks are categorized into product marks, service marks, certification marks and collective marks. And the elements that can combine a trademark include (Chinese) characters, figures, letters of the alphabet, sound, colour combinations, 3-dimensional symbol and their combinations according to the Article 8 of China Trademark Law. A trademark seeking registration shall be so distinctive as to...

On November 14th, 2018 the Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce issued the largest trademark infringement case decided by the Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce in the past twenty years – the trademark infringement of the “Onitsuka Tiger” branded ASICS sneakers, with a fine of 55.87 million RMB.

ASICS is a Japanese limited corporation which has registered many trademarks , including those with the word “tiger”. In December of 2017, the Fengtai Branch of the Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce,...

Recently China set up an Intellectual Property Tribunal within the Supreme People’s Court (SPC) to serve as a national IP appellate court.[1] The appeals court opened for business at January 1st, 2019 , two months after plans to launch it were revealed. I t will oversee disputes on patents , plant varieties and computer software , among other areas, but not trademark or trade secrets . The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress is reviewing a draft proposal that paves the way for the Supreme People’s Court to hear appeals also in Shanghai and...

The results of the latest AHK Business Confidence Survey (BCS) shows, that hiring qualified employees is still considered as one of the top challenges among German companies in China .

An inefficient hiring process going along with questionable individual judgements often ends up in the hiring of a not qualified or unsuitable employee. This will most likely increase your staff turnover, will cause in higher personnel cost and might also have a negative impact on the organizational performance. Therefore it is important to be aware of the typical...

In August 2018, China’s State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) was renamed the National Intellectual Property Administration ( CNIPA ). It was reorganized under the new government body the State Administration for Market Regulation ( SAMR ).

SAMR was formed by the incorporation of several and currently separated administrative bodies. The following agencies or functions will be integrated under SAMR:

the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) (to be dismantled); the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) (to be...

We are pleased to present you our new brochure “China law and business guide, Version 2.0"

The main objective of our guide is to provide you with an overview of the current situation of the Chinese economic and legal market. Against this background, we have re-listed and supplemented our successful guide for our clients.

We do not pretend to provide all the answers in the guide, but we believe our new handbook will guide you solve problems, like how to set up a company in China, how to deal with labour law disputes , how to stay with your company complient and how to design...

On 07th December the SwissCham hosted their traditional Swiss night in the Hilton Hotel Beijing.

One of the main goals of this evening is to organize for the SwissCham members the perfect evening to celebrate the end of the year in a warm and relaxing atmosphere. The evening included a keynot speech by Adam Dunnett, Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the European Chamber of Commerce in China .

It was a good opportunity to mingling with old and new friends of the Swiss community. Here Starke Managing Counsel Daniel Albrecht with Adam Dunnett .