In the News: Patent Agency Rules; Securities Risks and Ride Hailing

March 11, 2019 | BY

Marilyn Romero

China adopts new rules for patent agencies; new CSRC boss Yi Huiman warns of market risks; and the government is urged to relax rules on ride-hailing driver services.

China adopts new rules for patent agencies

From March 1 this year, patent agencies in China will use an amended regulation, which includes an update on the qualifications for practitioners, a code of conduct, and supervision of services. In order to conduct business as patent agents, applicants must now possess the required educational background, and hold certificates gained by passing a national qualification examination, the new regulation stipulates.

Furthermore, the new rules require that a patent agency must be either a partnership enterprise or a limited liability company. However, under the amended rules, any organization or individual can apply for patents, or undertake other patent-related activities in China, as well as opt to entrust the job to a patent agency.

China's new securities regulator head warns on “grim and complex” risks

Yi Huiman, the new chairman of the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission, said on March 6 that the country's capital markets still face many risks. “Right now, due to the impact of many domestic and foreign factors, the capital market risk situation is still grim and complex,” he said at a press conference.

In particular, the regulator will be looking to avoid and diffuse risks in areas such as stock pledges, bond defaults and private equity funds. Last year, Beijing urged investors to support companies that faced problems by putting up shares as collateral as part of an effort to revive the capital markets from a dismal 2018 performance.

Yi also said that the country's capital markets will be best developed by focusing on four key areas: greater respect for markets, the law, professionalism, and risks.

China urged to relax rules on ride-hailing driver services

Cai Jiming, a deputy to the 12th National People's Congress and an economics professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said that there is a need for the government to ease the requirements for becoming a ride-share driver in order for the ride-hailing sector in China to soundly develop.

When China revealed its plans to regulate ride-hailing services back in 2016, many local transport authorities imposed stringent rules on ride-hailing services. For example, many cities now require drivers to have a local residence permit and their vehicles must also be registered locally. Consequently, many ride-hailing drivers have stopped working for mobile app-based companies and are carrying passengers illegally.

A solution would be for the government to allow qualified drivers without local residence permits to become ride-sharing drivers, and to improve supervision on ride-sharing platforms for safety concerns, said Cai.

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In the News: Patent Agency Rules; Securities Risks and Ride Hailing

This premium content is reserved for China Law & Practice Subscribers.

This premium content is reserved for
China Law & Practice Subscribers.