Key Talks in 1992, Court Cases in 2024, and “New Quality Productive Forces”

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Category: SINOTALKS® In Brief

Image: Mikhail Denishchenko, Production Technology (Publicdomainpictures.net)

Coined by President XI Jinping in 2023, the term “new quality productive forces” is of great significance because related reforms, with reference to various types of investment, have been identified by the Chinese leadership. Key talks given in 1992 by the late reformist leader DENG Xiaoping and select court cases recently released by China help illuminate the meaning of the term. Actions taken by the courts in these cases to support the development of “new quality productive forces” allow investors to better assess related opportunities.Read more

In Brief

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Category: SINOTALKS® In Brief

Images: icon0 com, China Flag Themes Idea;
Victoria Borodinova, Brazil Flag, Brazil, Friendship (Publicdomainpictures.net)

In their recent joint statement on climate change, China and Brazil stress the need to combine “urgent climate responses” with the protection of nature to, among other goals, eradicate hunger. Accomplishing these goals will not be easy because some are conflicting. High-yielding seeds needing little agricultural inputs to grow seem to be the panacea required. Are legal tools available to help incentivize the development of such seeds?Read more

SinoForum&Foresight

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: Charles Rondeau, Green Dollar (Publicdomainpictures.net)

Core Climate was launched by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited in October 2022. How can Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, leverage Core Climate to assist the country’s Greater Bay Area and other regions to accomplish their climate goals? Will Core Climate be able to help Hong Kong become a leader in sustainable finance in Asia?Read more

U.S.–China Relations, Climate Change, and Biodiversity Loss

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Category: SINOTALKS® In Brief

Image: George Hodan, Tropical Sea Underwater With Corals (Publicdomainpictures.net)

In his recent speech, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken clearly stated that China is “integral” to the United States’s ability to solve the climate crisis. He urged China to join the United States in “accelerating the pace” of their shared efforts. Ecosystems with healthy populations of native plants and animals help address climate challenges. Yet many ecosystems have been adversely affected by the loss of biodiversity. How does China tackle this loss?Read more

Guiding Case 177

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: Linnaea Mallette, Giant Clam Under The Sea (Publicdomainpictures.net)

In December 2021, the Supreme People’s Court of China released Guiding Case No. 177. The Guiding Case illustrates how China performs its obligations under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to protect marine biodiversity.Read more

In Brief

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Category: SINOTALKS® In Brief

Images: gnomeandi;
Peter Gudella (Shutterstock.com)

The worsening food crisis around the world has made the China–Laos Railway, which opened in December 2021, even more important to China. Has China taken steps to help Laos so that the latter can manage related legal risks better? From China’s perspective, helping Laos maximize its benefits from this USD 6 billion railway project while minimizing the risks involved will strengthen the two countries’ relations and bode well for China’s presence in that region.Read more

Guiding Case 160

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: Heru Purwanto, Pomelo On The Tree (Publicdomainpictures.net)

Guiding Case No. 160 addresses a fundamental issue: when rights to a new plant variety are granted, what falls within the scope of protection?  According to China’s legislation, propagation materials of the plant for which variety rights have been granted are clearly protected.  Yet, what are “propagation materials”?  Unfortunately, no definition can be found in China’s legislation.  Guiding Case No. 160 fills the legal gap by setting the criteria for such determination.Read more

Guiding Case 100

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: Lilla Frerichs, Indian Corn 1 (Publicdomainpictures.net)

Before the release of Guiding Case No. 100, the Supreme People’s Court of China released Guiding Case No. 92 to establish this principle: in a case involving infringement of rights to a new plant variety, when the related DNA fingerprinting test result cannot provide a clear answer, the allegedly infringing party, i.e., the defendant, has the burden to prove that the allegedly infringing plant is different from the plant for which variety rights have been granted.  Guiding Case No. 100 shows what the defendant can do to meet this burden of proof.Read more

Guiding Case 92

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: Andrew Schmidt, Corn On The Cob (Publicdomainpictures.net)

Guiding Case No. 92 provides guidance on an important issue frequently encountered in cases involving infringement of rights to new plant varieties: how to determine whether two plants are of the same variety, when the related DNA fingerprinting test result cannot provide a clear answer.  According to this Guiding Case, when this happens, the allegedly infringing party, i.e., the defendant, has the burden to prove that the allegedly infringing plant is different from the plant for which variety rights have been granted.  How did the court justify the shifting of the burden to the defendant?Read more

Plants

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Category: SinoInsights™

Image: George Hodan, Agriculture (Publicdomainpictures.net)

The Supreme People’s Court of China released Guiding Case Nos. 92, 100, and 160 to clarify fundamental issues related to the protection of rights to new plant varieties that were left unanswered by the country’s legislation and judicial interpretations.  Yet, have these three Guiding Cases essentially lost their significance, considering that their guiding principles, as analyzed in this article, have already been incorporated into the Supreme People’s Court’s latest judicial interpretation related to new plant varieties?  Dr. Mei Gechlik explains why the answer is negative and discusses related implications. Read more