From 24 to 28 June 2019, the Sino-German Legal Cooperation Programme held the annual training course on commercial law together with the Treaty and Law Department of the Ministry of Commerce (MofCom).
Some 40 civil servants from all MofCom departments attended the course and will be able to pass on their insights as multipliers. The course provided information on current developments in Chinese, German and European civil and commercial law. This year’s course focused on export control, foreign direct investments, compliance for businesses as well as credit rating systems. German and Chinese experts gave presentations on each topic, which were followed by in-depth discussions.
Ms. YANG Xiaoyan, Head of Division at MofCom and Dr Enno Ruppert, Legal Advisor at GIZ’s Sino-German Legal Cooperation Programme, opened the five-day training course by emphasising the long and successful cooperation. Dr Julia Pfeil, partner at Dentons law firm in Frankfurt am Main, spoke about German export control legislation and the challenges in export control of technologies and dual-use goods. Mr GE Xiaofeng, deputy division director at MofCom’s Department of Treaty and Law, presented on Chinese foreign trade law.
On the second day of the course, Dr Jan D. Bonhage, partner of the law firm Hengeler Mueller in Berlin, explained the examination of foreign direct investments in Germany based on the legal requirements of the German Foreign Trade Regulation. Subsequently, Division Director WANG Yi of MofCom’s Department for Treaty and Law, introduced the Chinese regulations on this subject.
Dr Bonhage also gave a lecture on the third day of the course in which he presented the compliance requirements for companies operating in Germany. In particular, he explained the risks for companies regarding data protection, antitrust law, money laundering and corruption. In the afternoon, LI Tiezheng, Senior Partner of Beijing Future-Land Information Consulting, presented the Chinese compliance requirements in comparison. The fourth day of the course was also dedicated to compliance. Dr. Pfeil provided information on how companies can set up an internal compliance system in order to avoid violations and corresponding liability.
Finally, the course focused on the economic significance of credit ratings from the German and Chinese perspectives. Dr Ruppert dealt with the business models of credit rating agencies in Germany and their role in credit rating. He emphasised the legal requirements for their activities, in particular regarding data protection. HAN Jiaping, Director General at the Credit Department of the MofCom Research Institute, explained the theory and practical experiences of setting up the social credit system from a Chinese perspective.