Legal Teahouse

Mercy Xie, a Doctor of Juridical Science candidate at Syracuse University, shares her life story as a person with disability and her views on disability rights.  Learn more about her on Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeaOESuN7J7i8SA0F2MdkWQ), WeChat (ID: smog_official) or search her name 谢仁慈 Mercy.

John Tan, an Arnold & Porter partner based in Shanghai, discusses his FCPA investigation practice in China. John talks about the FCPA enforcement mechanism, China's national security law's implications on investigation, and China's corporate social credit system. 

Chinese law professor Guo Bing sued Hangzhou wildlife park for its compulsive use of facial recognition. The court ruled for Prof Guo based on the contract theory, but brushed off the "lawful, proper, and necessary" standard of personal information protection.

Professor Eugene Volokh from UCLA School of Law shared his expertise in discussing the WeChat users' First Amendment challenge to the US government's WeChat ban.

A White House executive order issued on August 6 seeks to ban transactions with TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance. TikTok and ByteDance sued the government for misusing the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and violating the Fifth Amendment due process.

A Beijing appellate court held e-commerce company Dangdang can't fire its transgender employee for absence without official leave when she, with her direct supervisor's oral approval, took time off to undertake a sex reassignment surgery.

UCLA APILSA leader Constance Chan talked about why the Asian Pacific Islander community should support the Black Lives Matter movement. Constance highlighted that the conversation is not a substitute for learning about racism issues directly from Black authors, Black activists, or experts in Asian-Black relations, and she recommended the following resources as a starting point:ArticlesThe real reasons the U.S. became less racist toward Asian AmericansDamaged Asian businesses show solidarity with Black Lives Matter protestersHow the killing of Latasha Harlins changed South L.A., long before Black Lives MatterWeChat Warriors in the Trial of Peter LiangYes, We Literally Mean Abolish the Police: Because Reform Won’t Happen: Books and movieThe New Jim Crow by Michelle AlexanderAsian American Studies Now: A Critical Reader by Jean WuJust Mercy by Bryan StevensonJust Mercy (movie)Slavery by Another Name by Douglas BlackmonHow to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. KendiStrangers from a Different Shore by Ronald TakakiThe Color of Success by Ellen WuOther resourcesUCLA APILSA: https://www.instagram.com/ucla_apilsa/?igshid=72vmx45d4x8aUCLA BLSA: https://www.instagram.com/uclablsa/?igshid=3p76gsv39xycLetters for Black Lives: https://lettersforblacklives.com/MPD150: https://www.mpd150.com/faq/?fbclid=IwAR2MOi34vAYzxPb7NyrGHuSyTEu1kESjLuEYkPSFIeV2Rs88YI-QFv0MGFACommunication between Chinese American parents and childrenYale students’ letter to the Chinese American community: https://chineseamerican.org/p/31571A Chinese American parent's response to the Yale students' letter: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/8VT8aUHDHcb-pmOIztwfFQA Harvard student's response to the Chinese American parent's letter: https://chineseamerican.org/p/31656

Steven Pinker, Tariq Ali, and Elif Sarican debatehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZItW8wPGiYTrevor Noah's reflection on the riots and looting amongst the Black Lives Matter protests https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4amCfVbA_cBail Funds sources (from copy and pasting):The Bail Project: is now bailing out protestors in cities where they have offices. https://bailproject.orgThe Colorado Freedom fund is now bailing out protestors in Denver. https://fundly.com/coloradofreedomColumbus Freedom Fund is now bailing out protestors in Columbus, Ohio. https://www.paypal.me/columbusfreedomfund Bail Fund bailing out protestors in Los Vegas, NV: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/vegasfreedomfundLos Angeles, CA Bail Fund organized by White People 4 Black Lives: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/wp4bl

Some Chinese citizens have been punished for using VPN to circumvent the Great Firewall, an activity that was believed to be legal.

China is ahead of America to move its courts online. Is this the way to go in the post-pandemic world?

This episode overviews the contact tracing practice in various countries and the legal risks American businesses will face if they impose contact tracing apps on their employees

William Ju talked about his experience as a first-year associate practicing in the area of real estate finance, a business hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Legally trained in the U.S. and China and licensed to practice in CA and NY, William shared his thoughts on becoming a transactional attorney.

Missouri joined the blame game by suing China for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it's highly unlikely that Missouri can get around sovereign immunity China enjoys under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.

UCLA Law student Zhang Zhening talked about his views of racism and Chinese writer Fang Fang's Wuhan quarantine Diary.

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, China has been blamed for its wildlife trade. Is the blame legit? How is China coping with it?

A UCLA law student and co-founder of Asia Law Organization, Adam Renth shared his work experience in China, his thoughts on contemporary issues, and his perspectives of cross-border legal practice.

U.S. government and Chinese government were each sued for allegedly mishandling or even creating the COVID-19 pandemic. How will the cases go?

A top Chinese law school graduate and currently a UCLA Law student, Hannah Zhang joins Legal Teahouse to talk about her experience and observations in the two countries.

China's nationwide lockdown has proved effective. Meanwhile, individual rights issues, including disproportionate compulsory measures and discrimination, are not to be neglected.

Chinese swimmer Sun Yang received an eight-year ban for refusing a sample collection. Court of Arbitration for Sport found the testing personnel had properly followed procedural requirements, and Sun had no compelling justifications to break the sample collection container. This case provides a typical example of Chinese approaches colliding with international rules. Sun gambled his career based on his reliance of Chinese sports bureaucracy. And his disrespectful attitude earned him the maximum sanction.

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.