China Laws

Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Franchising of China

According to Chain Store & Franchise Association, China has risen to be the largest home to franchising operations with the most franchise systems in the world. Nevertheless, China has not come up with any legislation on franchising except three administrative regulations, among which the Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Franchising is the leading one. This document is adopted in January, 2007, superseding the Administrative Measures for Commercial Franchising, and contains 5 chapters and 34 articles. Read more…

Laws & Regulations on Child Labor in China

China has no dedicated laws on the child labor issue so far. This issue is addressed in the Labor Law of People’s Repubic of China(1994), Law of the Peoples Republic of China on the Protection of Minors (2006) and two decrees made by the State Council of China: Provisions on The Prohibition of Using Child Labor (adopted in 2002 and superseding the one issued in 1991) and Provisions on Special Protection for Minor Workers (1994). The first decree wields protection on the minors under the age of 16 and the second is about minor workers between 16 and 18. Herein we will give a general introduction to the first decree. Read more…

Immigration Regulations in China

China has no immigration laws in place so far, though a governmental source indicated that drafting is under way in 2010 (See China Plans Draft Immigration Law). Compared with the countries boasting as inbound immigration destinations, China features more outbound immigrants. Thus, most of China’s regulations on immigration focus more on outbound immigration and entry and exit administration, far inadequate for effectively regulating inbound immigration and immigrants’ settlement, esp. those highly skilled immigrants and refugees. The most pertinent regulation is as follows. Read more…

Employment Law of China

The enactment of the new Employment Contract Law of the People’s Republic of China in January, 2008 has been deemed as a significant historical event in China. Although as its title suggests, it is a law related to employment contracts, it is actually the most comprehensive employment law in China and also includes articles pertaining to the employment relationship after contracting. It was called a reactive law to tackle the increasingly chaotic Chinese labor market and system in the beginning of the 21st century featuring a low level of contracting and a high rate of wage default and forced labor. Compared to the previous Labor Law issued in 1994, this 98-article-long law, though long being the focus of controversy, is expected to provide more job security and protection for employees. Read more…

Top Domestic Law Firms in Shanghai

In 2010, Shanghai’s bar industry registered a rocketing growth, partly thanks to the World Expo Shanghai. As of the end of 2010, 213 investment companies have set foot in Shanghai, the financial and commercial centre of China, and 74 of Fortune’s Top 500 set up their regional headquarter in Shanghai, which boosts the development of Shanghai’s law firms which focus more on corporate investment and financing. Currently there are 1,078 law firms and 12,557 licensed lawyers in Shanghai. The following are market leaders. Read more…

Contract Law of China

Contract Law of People’s Republic of China was enacted in Oct. 1999. It is considered a milestone in China’s legal system building and economic development because it put an end to the increasingly controversial co-existence of three independent contract-related laws: Economic Contract Law (1981), Foreign-related Economic Contract Law (1985) and Technology Contract Law (1987), and provided uniform governing codes for China’s market economy. Comprised of General Provisions, Specific Provisions and Supplementary Provisions, Contract Law is China’s second largest law with 23 chapters and 428 articles. Read more…

Adoption Law of China

Adoption Law of the People’s Republic of China is the main legal regulation in China which is composed of six chapters, including 34 articles. The law is first adopted on 1991, and then revised in 1998. In the current edition, eligibility restrictions for adoption are loosened and adoption procedures are streamlined based on the previous edition. Read more…