The paper includes recommendations to curb industry collusion.
China on Friday issued anti-monopoly guidelines stipulating that industry associations should not organise firms to engage in monopoly agreements and should guide them to strengthen antitrust compliance.
The guidelines further instruct these associations to guide their members in strengthening antitrust compliance.
Simultaneously, China’s Jiangsu Province has taken a crucial step in protecting trade secrets by releasing the first-ever “Guidelines for Handling Criminal Cases of Infringing upon Trade Secrets.” The announcement, made on January 8, marks a substantial development in addressing the escalating incidents of trade secret infringement, particularly triggered by employee turnover.
Currently, China’s legislation pertaining to the protection of trade secrets is confined to Article 9 of the “Anti-Unfair Competition Law” and Article 219 of the “Criminal Law.” However, the newly introduced “Guidelines” aim to provide comprehensive and explicit directives for handling criminal cases related to trade secret infringement.
The “Guidelines” address these concerns by outlining the overall requirements for handling criminal cases of trade secret infringement. Key aspects covered include the nature of trade secrets, acts constituting trade secret infringement, criteria for determining the severity of circumstances, and considerations for joint criminal activities. The document also specifies methods for ascertaining technical facts, appraisal procedures, and associated requirements.
