Here’s the announcement (with links), from the China IPR blog: http://chinaipr.com/2013/04/28/resident-legal-advisor-for-china-us-doj/

Here’s the announcement (with links), from the China IPR blog: http://chinaipr.com/2013/04/28/resident-legal-advisor-for-china-us-doj/

Customs officers have seized 9.3 million illicit cigarettes and 90kg of illicit tobacco worth $24 million, and with a duty potential of $16 million.

Acting on intelligence, they searched a container at Kwai Chung Customshouse Cargo Examination Compound yesterday.

From Malaysia, the container was declared to contain toilet paper and was believed to be destined for Australia.

It is believed that the smuggling syndicate may have been using the transnational sea network to smuggle the goods through different ports before the final destination to evade customs detection.

Secretary for Security TK Lai will begin a week-long visit to London and Berlin tomorrow.

Mr Lai will meet with British and German ministers and officials to discuss the latest developments in Hong Kong, and exchange views on issues of common interest.

While in London from May 1 to May 4, Mr Lai will call on the Home Office, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Association of Chief Police Officers and Serious Organised Crime Agency. He will also speak at a luncheon hosted by the Hong Kong Association.

Mr Lai will be in Berlin from May 5 to 7 for meetings with senior officials of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Police, Berlin Senate Department of the Interior, and Berlin Branch Office of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.

He will return to Hong Kong on May 8.

Intel Capital's portfolio company, Hsinchu City, Taiwan-based ASPEED Technology Inc., IPOs today on Taiwan's GreTai Securities Market, the island's over-the-counter market. Reflecting a still tough IPO market worldwide, this is Intel Capital's first IPO by one of its portfolio companies this year. Founded in 2004, ASPEED Technology is a software and network applications company. “ASPEED's […]

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China Mobile has terminated its sale purchase agreement with Taiwan's Far EasTone signed in 2009. China Mobile attributes the cancellation to the inability to have foreign investment in the Taiwanese basic telecom industry. According to the company's report, China Mobile and Far EasTone signed a stake purchase agreement in April 2009. China Mobile planned to […]

The Customs & Excise Department today arrested a 32-year-old man at the airport for smuggling 1.1kg of cocaine worth $1.2 million.

Customs officers stopped the man, who was arriving from Venezuela, and found the cocaine concealed in a false compartment in his rucksack.

He will be charged with drug trafficking and will appear at Tsuen Wan Magistracy tomorrow.

Police have arrested four men aged 18 to 30 in Yuen Long and Sheung Shui, suspected to have been involved in a Sheung Shui murder. 

 At about 12.55pm yesterday, Police received a report that a 30-year-old man was injured after being attacked on Po King Road. He was later certified dead at North District Hospital.

The four men are being detained for enquiries.

NASDAQ-traded Focus Media says today that shareholders have voted to approve a deal to privatize the company, adding to a long list of Chinese companies that have quit foreign exchanges. Previously announced on December 19 last year, the go-private deal values the Shanghai-based Chinese advertising company at $3.7 billion at a price tag of $27.50 […]

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Normally I wouldn’t bother you with the news that a case I have already discussed many times has kicked off. No real news to report here, at least not yet. However, after reading the coverage in Xinhua, I just felt obligated to pass along this little treasure from the alleged infringer’s crack legal team: The defendants […]

A while back, I wrote about the feud between the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) and, well, itself, specifically Beijing (aka headquarters) and its sub-commissions in Shanghai and Shenzhen. The latter two went rogue, with Beijing saying that the “CIETAC” moniker was no longer available to them and that anyone choosing to […]

Hong Kong legal and arbitration professionals, with their rich experience in international commercial law and high level of professional expertise, can help Mainland enterprises to expand into international markets, Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen says.

Addressing the Seminar on Hong Kong Legal & Arbitration Services held in Xiamen today, Mr Yuen said Hong Kong has been a hub for legal and dispute resolution services in the Asia-Pacific region for years.

While working to enhance the laws, regulations and legal services, Hong Kong also strives to attract international legal organisations and arbitration institutions to set up offices in Hong Kong.

Late last year, the world-renowned Hague Conference on Private International Law set up its Asia Pacific Regional Office in Hong Kong.

"This not only constitutes a vote of confidence in Hong Kong's position as a regional legal services centre, but also enables Hong Kong to play a greater role in the provision of services in the field of private international law."

Hong Kong's arbitral awards are enforceable in over 140 jurisdictions under the New York Convention, and Mr Yuen said that the Department of Justice will continue to expand this network.

The seminar is one of the activities under the Fujian Xiamen Hong Kong Week 2013, it promotes Hong Kong's important role as a legal services and dispute resolution centre in the Asia Pacific Region, and the services and assistance provided by Hong Kong's legal and arbitration professions to Mainland enterprises in their process of 'going-out'.

Mr Yuen met with the Department of Justice of Fujian Province's Director-General Chen Yixing this morning, and exchanged views on the development of legal and arbitration services and further enhancing legal co-operation. He also visited Fujian Xiamen Hong Kong Week 2013 exhibitions before returning to Hong Kong.

2013 could be the best year for global private equity fundraising since 2009, according to Palico.com, an online platform that connects Limited Partners (LPs) and General Partners (GPs). (Listen to our interview of Palico's founder Antoine Dréan here) Some 130 private equity funds closed with value slightly more than $69 billion during the first quarter. […]

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If I told you to think about intellectual property enforcement in China and asked you what was the first image that popped into your head, I’m betting it would look something like this (courtesy of China Daily): Nothing is more iconic than the old steamroller picture. It’s also a great symbol of the statistics-driven way […]

Senior Immigration Assistant Hong Ki-ying has been elected Hong Kong's most courteous Immigration control officer, the Immigration Department says.

Director of Immigration Chan Kwok-ki and Hong Kong Tourism Board Deputy Executive Director Daisy Lui today presented awards and souvenirs to Mr Hong.

Mr Chan said the Most Courteous Immigration Control Officers Election in 2012 was the 17th such campaign and its objective was to promote a customer-focused service culture within the Government and to help improve Hong Kong's tourist industry.

He thanked all front-line Immigration control officers for their devotion in providing efficient and courteous service to travellers.

"Hong Kong is Asia's world city and a gateway to the Mainland and the world. As Hong Kong's gatekeeper, the Immigration Department is committed to providing quality and efficient services to visitors while implementing effective immigration control."

The tourism board appointed the winner a Hong Kong Courtesy Ambassador.

Honeywell has agreed to buy RAE Systems, Inc. for $340 million from its private equity owners, Vector Capital and CITIC Capital Partners. Headquartered in San Jose, California and founded in 1991, RAE Systems manufactures intelligent gas and radiation detection systems used in more than 120 countries. Honeywell's price represents approximately 13 times RAE Systems' estimated […]

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The Immigration Department estimates that around 4.2 million passengers will pass through Hong Kong's sea, land and air control points during the upcoming Labour Day holidays from April 27 to May 1, a 7.5% increase over the corresponding period last year.

Around 3.2 million passengers will pass through land boundary control points. The number of outbound passengers by land will peak on April 27 with around 335,000 people departing Hong Kong, while inbound traffic will be heaviest on April 28 with around 342,000 arrivals.

An estimated 1.42 million passengers will travel via Lo Wu Control Point, making it the busiest entry point, with a daily average of 283,000 passengers.

Passenger traffic at the Lok Ma Chau, Lok Ma Chau Spur Line and Shenzhen Bay control points will also be heavy, with daily average forecasts of 86,000, 151,000 and 97,000 passengers.

To avoid congestion and long waits for immigration clearance, the department advises cross-boundary travellers to plan in advance, avoid making journeys during busy periods, and follow radio and TV broadcasts on conditions at control points.

Hong Kong residents who require assistance while travelling outside Hong Kong may call (852) 1868.

Police say the dock protestors’ blockade of Kwai Chung container terminal today is regrettable, and they will follow up on legal liabilities of those concerned.

Protestors conducted a public procession by occupying the lanes of Container Port Road South in Kwai Chung today, without giving prior notice to Police.

They walked slowly and stopped at intervals, obstructing the road, paralysing traffic and affecting the safety of others.

Despite repeated appeals and warnings, the protestors refused to cooperate with Police.

The protestors have been conducting public events outside the Kwai Chung Container Terminal and in Central since March 28.

Police respect people’s rights of expression, freedom of speech and assembly, and appeal to the protestors to abide by the law and express their views in a peaceful and rational manner.

Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen will visit Xiamen on April 26 and 27 to attend the Seminar on Hong Kong Legal and Arbitration Services. He will deliver an opening address.

The seminar aims to promote Hong Kong's important role as a legal services and dispute resolution centre in the Asia Pacific Region, covering legal issues, risk management and dispute resolution. In particular, it focuses on assisting Mainland enterprises in their process of investing outside of China, or 'going out'.

The seminar will be attended by legal and arbitration professionals, government officials and business sectors of both Fujian Province and Hong Kong, including the Hong Kong Bar Association, the Law Society of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre.

During his stay, Mr Yuen will meet Xiamen Party Secretary Yu Weiguo, and Director-General of the Department of Justice of Fujian Province Chen Yixing. He will also visit exhibitions of Fujian Xiamen Hong Kong Week 2013. Deputy Solicitor General Peter Wong will also join the visit.

The Food & Environmental Hygiene Department has ordered a restaurant in Causeway Bay to suspend business for two weeks.

It is on the ground floor of Tang Fai Building at No. 36-48 Tang Lung Street.

It repeatedly breached the Food Business Regulation by illegally extending the food business area and keeping live fish in poor quality water.

It was convicted for the breaches in June and March. It was fined $7,000, and registered 15 demerit points under the department's demerit points system.

An unprecedented 32 million square meters of shopping center space is currently under construction across the world. Of that, China is home to 16.8 million square meters of space, taking up more than half of all the space under construction globally, according to a report published by global real estate service firm CBRE. Among the […]

Visit ChinaMoneyNetwork.com for more great China Money Podcast audio and video Internet episodes covering important investment news and financial events in China, as well as daily news updates on important China business news happenings. Follow us on Twitter @chinamoneypod subscribe to all episodes on iTunes.