Competition law in China

Taught by

• Thomas Cheng, Associate Professor, The University of Hong Kong
• David Stallibrass, Fingleton Associates

About this course

This six-hour short course will give students an introduction to the Chinese Anti-monopoly Law.

The course will cover all the basic aspects of substantive competition law, including restrictive agreements, abuse of dominance, merger review, IP-competition interface, and an area of competition law unique to China known as abuse of administrative monopoly.

Students will be introduced to the leading cases with reference to both private litigation in the courts and administrative enforcement by state agencies.

The course will seek to highlight the similarities and difference between the Chinese Anti-Monopoly Law and competition law in other jurisdictions, such as the EU and the US. In addition, it will set the Chinese law within the broader context of Chinese political and economic development.

The course will include a discussion of the unique context in which competition law is enforced in China and a critical evaluation of the cause and effect of divergence between Chinese and international competition law norms.

What you will learn

• Students will become familiar with the political economy and institutional environment that contextualises competition law enforcement in China.
• Students will understand the basic aspects of all areas of substantive competition law, including restrictive agreements, abuse of dominance, merger review, IP-competition interface, and an area of competition law unique to China known as abuse of administrative monopoly.
• Students will be introduced to leading cases with reference to both private litigation in the courts and administrative enforcement by state agencies.
• Students will acquire a greater appreciation of the development of competition law in China in the context of the global debate about and movement toward convergence.

Course prerequisites

None, though a good understanding of UK, EU, or US competition law is highly desirable.

Readings

A pack with english translations of core legislation, guidance, and decisions will be provided. Students will be expected to have made themselves familiar with it.

About the teachers

Thomas Cheng is an associate professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale College, and a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School, and a Bachelor of Civil Law degree in European and Comparative Law from the University of Oxford. His research focuses on competition law and policy issues, especially comparative competition law and competition law in developing countries.

Thomas is a member of the Hong Kong Competition Commission, Administrative Appeals Board, the Energy Advisory Committee, and the Committee on Slots Complaints. He has assisted the Hong Kong government in drafting the city’s first comprehensive competition law. He is also a member of the executive board of the Academic Society for Competition Law (ASCOLA) and is a member of the advisory board of the American Antitrust Institute.

David Stallibrass is a director at Fingleton Associates, a strategic regulatory advice boutique. He was the first economist to testify before both a regional high-court and the Supreme Peoples Court of China in an antitrust dispute in the high profile dispute between Tencent and Qihoo 360.

Previously he worked in a number of roles at the UK Office of Fair Trading such as Director responsible for consumer protection and competition enforcement in the health and professional services industries; Assistant Director responsible for the OFT’s investigation into bank charges; Senior Economic Advisor on a wide range of investigations and mergers; and Head of Strategy.

David has degrees from Oxford University and the London School of Economics, is a senior research fellow at Koguan Law School in Shanghai, and has published a number of articles on antitrust and regulation. Currently David is a director at Fingleton Associates, a strategic regulatory advice boutique.