Over the years my law firm has been called in a number of times to try to get rid of an out of control Legal Representative of a WOFE. Typically, the company calling us thinks that it ought to be able to rid itself of its WFOE Legal Representative simply by issuing a resolution making… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: WFOE
China Is Getting Tougher On Foreign Business. Stay Flexible And It Will Be Just Fine…
Posted in China BusinessOne of the themes of this blog for years has been that China is making things tougher for foreign businesses by increasing the strength of its business laws and by stepping up its enforcement of them against foreign companies. We hear that the same thing is happening to Chinese domestic companies, but starting from a… Continue Reading
How To Terminate China Employees. Oh, And Be Sure To Pay Them.
Posted in Basics of China Business Law, Legal NewsThough Western companies getting tripped up in China due to differences in legal systems makes for common fodder on this blog, in the employment law context the reverse often holds true. Far too often my law firm gets contacted by companies in trouble for either assuming China’s labor laws are completely different from the West’s… Continue Reading
Hiring A Chinese Employee Without A China Company. Good Luck With That. Part II.
Posted in Legal NewsA couple of years ago, we did a post on the difficulties in using “independent contractors” in China, entitled, Hiring A Chinese Employee Without A Chinese Entity. Good Luck With That. We wrote that post (and this post too) because forming a WFOE in China can be so difficult, expensive, and time-consuming, and because so many companies are… Continue Reading
When In China …. China Labor Law Controls
Posted in Legal NewsJust received an email from a friend stating/asking the following (note that I have changed some elements of the email to strip it of any even potentially identifying information): I am heading off again to work for a few years at our China Rep Office. My new employment contract with the head office says that… Continue Reading
Five Things To Consider In Forming Your China Company. Plus The Most Important One Of All.
Posted in China BusinessVery helpful post over at the always helpful International Business Law Advisor Blog. The post is appropriately entitled, The 5 Key Factors You Must Consider When Establishing a Foreign Corporation and it lists out the following: Decide on Corporate Form: The post talks of determining the right corporate form for the country in which you will be… Continue Reading
On Doing Investment Research In China As A WFOE. Not Legal.
Posted in Legal NewsOne of the things we are always preaching on this blog is the need to first ask whether what you are proposing to do in China is legal or not. I am always telling of how a company once contacted us, bragging about the huge amount it had spent on market research and proudly proclaiming… Continue Reading
Selling In And Into China. Four Good Tips And Mine.
Posted in China BusinessThe New York Times has an excellent article on doing business in China. The article is entitled, “New Path for Trade: Selling in China,” and it is replete with good advice. Except mine. Let me explain. The article is on selling goods in or into China and it talks of the great opportunities there and… Continue Reading
Getting Your WFOE Approved In China. What It Really Takes.
Posted in Recommended ReadingThe United States Chamber of Commerce recently came out with a report comprehensively detailing what it takes to get a foreign investment approved in China. I started skimming it, but stopped becuase it caused a sinking feeling in my stomach as it hit too close to home. But for anyone wondering why it takes so damn much… Continue Reading
Doing Business With The New China Seminar. December 13, 2012. Seattle.
Posted in Events, Good PeopleOn December 13, I will, along with Fraser Mendel, be co-chairing a seminar on “The China Market: Selling Products and Services in the New China.” I promise you it will be an excellent seminar. I can make this promise because I have known nearly all of the speakers for many years and I can vouch for… Continue Reading
How To Form A China Company (WFOE or JV). Hong Kong Entities. They’re Baaaaack. Part II.
Posted in UncategorizedLess than a month ago, we wrote a post, entitled, How To Form A China Company (WFOE or JV). Hong Kong Entities. They’re Baaaaack. The gist of that post was that my law firm was now favoring the forming of Special Purpose Entities in Hong Kong to hold the soon to be formed Mainland China Wholly Foreign… Continue Reading
How To Form A China Company (WFOE or JV). Hong Kong Entities. They’re Baaaaack.
Posted in Legal NewsBy: Steve Dickinson When making a WFOE (Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise) or JV (Joint Venture) investment in China, the investor must consider: who will be the shareholder in the PRC entity? Will the investor invest directly, or will the investor create a special purpose subsidiary company (an SPV or Special Purpose Vehicle/a/k/a SPE or Special… Continue Reading
Building And Operating A China Factory. Why Even Bother?
Posted in China BusinessClient of mine emailed me a post on starting a factory in China and asked me if it was accurate. I told him yes and, if anything, it had sugar-coated things. The post was Creating a factory in China to replace your suppliers, on the Quality Inspection Tips Blog, and it essentially warned of the “huge”… Continue Reading
The Best Way To Do Business With China. Joint Venture, Rep Office, Licensing Agreement, Distributorship, Export Selling?
Posted in China BusinessRichard Brubaker over at All Roads Lead to China just did an interesting post on the return of China Joint Ventures. The post is entitled “Who is up for another round of Joint Ventures,” and its thesis is that China is getting tougher on foreigners so foreigners are reconsidering the value of a Joint Venture… Continue Reading
Top Ten China Mistakes
Posted in China BusinessCame across a really good list of mistakes businesspeople make in China. The list, entitled, “Top Ten Mistakes Businessmen Make in China,” was compiled by Stanley Chao, of All In Consulting. It really is a nice collection of tips and I present them below, with my comments in italics. Take the trust factor out. All actions… Continue Reading
Registering Companies In China. Kafka Is In the Building.
Posted in UncategorizedOne of the things we as lawyers face in trying to register companies, trademarks, licensing agreements, etc., in China are what I call the “little rules.” Does a document need to be notarized? Does it need to be appostilled? Does it need to be consularized? And if so, how must that document be notarized, appostilled,… Continue Reading
FCPA Issues In China. A Guest Post By Professor Daniel Chow.
Posted in Legal NewsThe following is a guest post by Daniel Chow, a Professor of International Law at Ohio State University. Professor Chow wrote an excellent and in-depth law review article on the FCPA in China and we thought a shorter version would be incredibly helpful for our readers. Fortunately, Professor Chow agreed and the following is that… Continue Reading
Forming a China WFOE — Getting Started
Posted in Legal NewsCheating a bit here, but since I am on the road, I cannot help it. I’m cheating because this post is nothing more than the typical email we send to our clients at the commencement of our work for them in forming a China WFOE. But I don’t feel bad because what better way to… Continue Reading
China Joint Ventures And WFOEs. Don’t Jump The Gun On Your Capital Contribution.
Posted in Legal NewsNot sure why (the bad economy?) but we have been getting a rash of China joint venture deals and possible deals over the last six months or so, many of which involve a United States company wanting to enter into a Joint Venture with their China manufacturer so as to work jointly on manufacturing and… Continue Reading
Doing Business In China By Starting A Business In China. The Legal Basics.
Posted in Basics of China Business Law, Legal NewsOne of the most common calls my law firm receives is the one from someone saying that they want to “start a business in China.” The first thing we do with that sort of caller is to seek to ascertain whether a China business is actually necessary. Forming and then operating a business entity in… Continue Reading
Selling Your Product Into China. What You Need To Know.
Posted in China Business, Legal NewsABC News is pushing (I received two different emails from ABC on it) a Diane Sawyer/ABC News clip entitled, “‘Made in America’ Products Selling in China.” Though it is the proverbial 3.28 minute puff piece, it is right on the big picture. There are huge opportunities to sell American product and American products are viewed… Continue Reading
China WFOE Legal Representative Liability. Just Enough To Keep You Up At Night.
Posted in Legal NewsThe other day, in “Personal Liability For Failed China WFOEs: The Law And The Reality,” we wrote about how Chinese law generally does not hold WFOE (Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise/Wholly Foreign Owned Entity) general managers, legal representatives or directors responsible for the debts of a failed WFOE, but creditors and local government officials sometimes do…. Continue Reading
Personal Liability For Failed China WFOEs: The Law And The Reality.
Posted in UncategorizedBy: Steve Dickinson The economic slowdown in North America and Europe has left many WFOEs in China with insufficient funds to continue their business activities. These WFOEs often have to suddenly shut down, leaving numerous unpaid debts. We have received a number of calls from worried general managers and directors concerning their personal liability in… Continue Reading
How To Form a China WFOE. Scope Really Really Matters, Part II.
Posted in Basics of China Business Law, Legal NewsEvery few months we get an email from someone seeking our help to prevent the Chinese government (broadly defined) from shutting down their business. Something is definitely afoot in China right now as we received three such emails just this week. The following is a composite of these three emails: We set up a WFOE… Continue Reading
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