Legal Teahouse

American biotech firm Gilead Sciences’ Remdesivir appears to be the most promising drug against COVID-19. Yet Chinese entities are patenting the use of the drug and producing the drug without Gilead Sciences’ approval. Is there patent infringement?

Chinese authority is funneling all the public donations through five designated charities.  Why is Chinese authority doing so?  What is the legal basis for this measure?  Is the measure efficient?

Once slammed for its underperformance, Wuhan Red Cross is gradually catching up.  Please see its announcement of overseas donation process here http://www.hbsredcross.org.cn/xxgk/4424.jhtml.  The webpage can be translated into English in Chrome.

Wuhan police sanctioned eight doctors for allegedly spreading rumors about the coronavirus at the early stage of the outbreak. This episode provides you a legal analysis of the sanctions.

Here are some resources for those who would like to help Chinese people fight the coronavirus.

For entities that would like to donate medical supplies, here is a donation announcement made by Cainiao, a Chinese logistics company launched by Alibaba Group https://www.aliwork.com/o/cainiao-donate-announcement#/. The webpage can be translated into English in Chrome. Individual donations are not accepted at this point.

For anyone who would like to donate money, here is a donation proposal made by Peking University Alumni Association of Southern California http://www.pku.org/pages/actinfo.php?id=294. The webpage can be translated into English in Chrome. The donation is eligible for income tax deduction.  Disclaimer: I'm an alumna of Peking University, but I'm not involved in the operation of the donation fund.  

Welcome to the Legal Teahouse, where we discuss legal issues relating to China.

I'm your host Yan Zhao.  Legally trained in China and currently a UCLA law student, I'm dedicated to bringing you my thoughts on China's legal issues.

In this episode, I compare China's current intellectual property protection practice with its commitments made in the U.S.-China phase one trade deal.  Some of the commitments are already underway, and yet there are still efforts to be made.