Civil Law

Whether Personal Credit Information is Sensitive Personal Information?

This essay tries to reconstruct the position of personal credit information in PIPL based on a comparative look and a theoretical reanalysis. Part 2 looks at extraterritorial theory and practice to demonstrate the necessity to balance personal credit information protection and financing facilitation. Part 3 argues that the definition in Article 28(1) of PIPL is unreasonable and the protection of personal credit information as sensitive personal information is neither socially beneficial nor, in fact, conducive to personal information protection. Part 4 denies personal credit information as sensitive personal information by a stricter interpretation of Article 28(1).

Yin Shanghong

China Law Update 15 Tsinghua China L. Rev. (2023)

Intellecutal Property Law

Distribution or Information Network Dissemination: A Prospect for the Legal Characterization of NFT Digital Work Transaction

Part 1 of this article will first highlight the core issue of the debate by identifying the stages in the NFT digital work transaction. A theoretical comparison of distribution and information network dissemination will be depicted in Part 2. Part 3 will therefore illustrate that the sale of NFT digital works is more appropriate to be deemed as an act of distribution instead of information network dissemination. Part 4 will further focus on the flaws of the judgment of China’s first NFT case. Finally, Part 5 will conclude the article and prospect the future of China’s copyright law legislation or interpretation.

Hao Xinchang

China Law Update 15 Tsinghua China L. Rev. (2023)

Civil Law

Identification of Parentage in the Context of Surrogacy

How to provide a relatively foreseeable system for the identification of parent-child relationship under the problem of surrogacy, and at the same time protect the interests of the parties, especially for the children involved in the cases has become an urgent problem to be solved. Based on the judicial judgment of Shanghai First Intermediate Court in 2015 and several latest judicial judgments of courts in China after that typical case, the article tries to analyze the possible influencing factors considered in different decisions and looks forward for future progress.

Chen Qingyang

China Law Update 15 Tsinghua China L. Rev. (2023)

Civil Law

More Accessible Protection for Domestic Violence Victims: New Developments in Personal Safety Protection Order

Except for the Introduction and the Conclusion, this note is divided into the following four sections: the first section analyzes the new standard of proof applicable to the issuance of personal safety protection orders, which is a lower one than the general one for Chinese civil litigations; the second section introduces how the new updates on protection orders expand the scope of “domestic violence”; the third section discusses how the new legal instruments contribute to the establishment of a more comprehensive enforcement mechanism for the protection orders; the last section proposes that China may establish a temporary protection order system soon. The author’s suggestions and comments on the new updates are incorporated in the relevant sections.

Zhou Shizun

China Law Update 15 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 161 (2022)

Anti-monopoly Law

The Ammended Anti-monopoly Law: Key Changes Under the Competition Policy

Except for the Introduction and the Conclusion, this note is divided into the following four sections: the first section analyzes the new standard of proof applicable to the issuance of personal safety protection orders, which is a lower one than the general one for Chinese civil litigations; the second section introduces how the new updates on protection orders expand the scope of “domestic violence”; the third section discusses how the new legal instruments contribute to the establishment of a more comprehensive enforcement mechanism for the protection orders; the last section proposes that China may establish a temporary protection order system soon. The author’s suggestions and comments on the new updates are incorporated in the relevant sections.

Cristina Zhang

China Law Update 15 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 179 (2022)

Constitutional Law

A New Stage of Legislative Experimentation of China in Hainan

China enacted the Hainan Free Trade Port Law (the "Hainan FTP Law") in June 2021. It is the first free trade port law in China, as well as the first law for a provincial area passed by National People's Congress and its Standing Committee. This note finds the enactment of the Hainan FTP Law a brand new legislative experimentation regarding the reform and opening-up in China, the experimental characters of which are revealed from the liberalization, devolution, and list approach applied during the lawmaking process of the Hainan FTP Law. This legislative experimentation will be of good value for future legislation accompanying the reform and opening-up.

Cao Wenjiao

China Law Update 13 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 363 (2020)

Administrative Law

Record-keeping of the Entire Administrative Penalty Process Development, Stipulation and Implications

The Administrative Penalty Law underwent its first major revision in January 2021, among which revision the Entire-process Record-keeping System (the "ERS") was introduced. The introduction of the ERS is a remarkable progress of rule of law in China. This note sorts out the development of the ERS from both ministerial and regional levels, understand its specific requirements, and reveal its possible impact through a comparative law perspective. Finally this note concludes that the ERS constitutes a reasonably mature system beneficial for strengthening the protection of concerned parties in the enforcement of administrative penalties, but has a potential negative influence on privacy.

Dessie Tilahun Ayalew

China Law Update 13 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 149 (2020)

Intellecutal Property Law

Leveling the Playing Field Chinese Courts' Practice of Anti-suit Injunction in Standard Essential Patent Area

Starting from reviewing two standard essential patent (the "SEP") related cases in which the Chinese courts issued the anti-suit injunctions, this note categorizes the approaches applied by the Chinses courts into two folds, the substantial one and the formal one. In this note, the substantial approach, which is a progressively embracing of law and economics analysis, can satisfy the need for the emergence of more pro-implementor judicial forums to rebalance the asymmetrical negotiation power between the patentees and the implementors.

Dessie Tilahun Ayalew

China Law Update 13 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 149 (2020)

Civil Law

China's Recent Civil Law Codification in the High-tech Era: History, Innovations, and Key Takeaways

On May 28, 2020, in its third session, the 13th National People’s Congress (hereinafter the “NPC”) adopted the Chinese Civil Code (hereinafter the “CCC”). The CCC represents a milestone in the modernization of the Chinese socialist legal system. China uses the continental legal system, where the codification of laws is a key attribute. Though seemingly paradoxical, the CCC is the first codified law in China — except for the Six Codes promulgated by the Kuomintang, for which legal drafters of that era modeled on European legal codes. The CCC is also the hard-won result of the Chinese Communist Party’s (hereinafter the “CPC”) political commitment to such codification. During its 19th National Congress, the CPC declared the codification of the CCC an important step in Chinese people’s pursuit of a better life, as well as in the promotion of socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.

Dessie Tilahun Ayalew

China Law Update 13 Tsinghua China L. Rev. 149 (2020)