On November 13, 2015, Watson & Band hosted the latest China Law Salon on the topic Legal Implications of “Internet +” for Cross-Border E-Commerce. Lecturer Cathy Wu, a W&B partner, talked about issues that are closely related to current hot legal topics, thereby drawing the attention of clients and other attendees. Seventeen people representing twelve renowned enterprises attended the lecture.

Ms. Wu started with a brief introduction of cross-border E-commerce, pointing out the numerous disadvantages of traditional shopping of overseas products such as complicated red tape and regulatory loopholes. She provided a detailed description of legal risks involved on “gray” customs clearance and smuggling, which highlighted the prominent advantages of transnational e-commerce clearance practices such as direct mail and bonded shopping. Ms. Wu then explained the fundamental concepts, features and industrial distribution chains of China’s cross-border e-commerce. She outlined Customs Announcement No. 56, which ensures the legality of online shopping of overseas goods.

In the second session, Cross-Border E-commerce – Custom Supervision, Regulation and Taxation, Ms. Wu provided a comprehensive introduction to the main content of five critical announcements issued by the General Administration of Customs from February 2014 (No.12: The Addition of a Customs Supervisory Method Codec) through June 2015 (No. 21: Adjusting Import Tariffs on Certain Daily Consumption Goods), and she explained the impact of these announcements on cross-border e-commerce. Ms. Wu then proceeded to use a branded milk power sold by an e-commerce operator as an example for analyzing the differences between imported goods tax and administrative tax. In her explanation of key points such as inspection and immunity, Chinese language labels, product quality and consumer rights, Ms. Wu applied principles of cross-border e-commerce to four real-life cases in light of the views of legal professionals.

During the last section, Cross-border E-commerce -- Intellectual Property Rights, Ms. Wu analyzed real cases involving (i) IP infringement risks in cross-border e-commerce, (ii) trademark and patent issues arising in parallel imports and offers of sale. The purpose of this analysis was to illustrate the precautions that can be adopted to mitigate legal risks. She also forecast the top ten trends in cross-border e-commerce legislation.

Cross-border e-commerce has been recognized as a new channel for the exploitation of foreign trade markets, the development of which has exerted a profound and far-reaching effect on the expansion of international market shares, the transformation of foreign trade development methods, and the reformulation of international trade rules. Ms. Wu noted, "The road to success is always full of thorns, while the path of least resistance is the road to mediocrity. The exploration of new things is always accompanied by marked progress and careful argumentation, which applies not only to business but also to understanding the law.”

W&B is dedicated to various innovative legal practices, especially cutting-edge IP-related cases. We will strive to keep abreast of our clients’ development as we provide cross-border e-commerce legal services and gear up for our clients’ further development and new demands.