While domestic companies have a wide range of alternatives in establishing business operations in China, foreign companies are more restricted, with the most common business vehicles for foreign investors being:

- Representative Offices
- Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprises 
- Joint Ventures (Cooperative and Contractual)

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V. Termination and ‘Layoffs’

1. Under what circumstances can an employee be terminated without notice?

An employer may terminate an employee without requirement for notice in the following situations:

- during the probation period, if the employee is determined to be unfit for the position;

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I. Employment Law Legislation

1. What legislation governs employment law in China?

Employment law in China is governed by a relatively comprehensive set of laws, more recently supplemented in late 2007 to strengthen workers’ rights.

Major laws include:
- Labour Law of the People’s Republic of China (1994) (“Labour Law”)

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To maintain the exclusive rights to IP, an organization must have the mechanisms in place to guarantee continued protection.

First of all, someone must ensure that registered IP rights maintain their validity. Trademarks are registered for 10 years at a time, thus registrations should be extended before the ending of such a validity period. Failure to do so will result in the loss of all exclusive rights to the trademark …

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The continued pervasiveness of counterfeiting in China is not only a problem of law, but also one of enforcement. While China’s laws and regulations conform to the agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPS) and other widely accepted international principles, certain parts of China’s protection mechanism have proven ineffective. Common examples are the high standards for criminal liability of counterfeiters, the high burden of evidence to prove bad faith registrations, and the difficulty to prove damages in civil proceedings…

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