One-Stop Shop
China & Asia
A flight to Asia is easy. Finding a partner in Asia is not. From take-off to landing, Eligon takes you through the storm with peace of mind.
The biggest legal risk in the world is China – and we got it covered!
Our international practice team focuses on being a one-stop shop when it comes to intellectual property matters in Asia. We have years of on-the-ground international experience, appreciate and can articulate the differences between Western and Asian legal systems (including where the trouble spots lie), and we help companies make sense of legal regimes that are foreign not just geographically, but also conceptually and philosophically.
Our team has decades of experience assisting companies of all sizes in intellectual property matters across the more than 45 countries that comprise Asia. We’ve initiated hundreds of legal actions with trademark offices, local governments and even the highest courts of China, Korea, and Indonesia. We’ve won mediations in Hong Kong, Macau, Australia and India. We’ve been invited to speak on the intricacies of China/Asia trademark practices (and how they differ from Western practices) in multiple fora across the US, including official US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) seminars. Eligon’s attorneys work with leading governments and industry organizations, such as the American Bar Association, to advance the interests of Western clients and deliver policy changes in transnational cooperation frameworks.
Founding Partner, and CEO Amy Hsiao, was selected by the former Deputy Secretary-General of China’s Trademark Association as the only Western attorney to contribute to a leading treatise analyzing the top 26 landmark trademark cases in China. Published by Wolters Kluwer, the book is viewed as China’s very first trademark textbook for the Western world and described as “the single indispensable source on China Trademark Law”. Amy has pursued trademark cases through all levels of China’s legal system and has won over 500 victories for her clients against some of China’s worst infringers and brand thieves. In 2022, Amy led the INTA round table discussion on the metaverse, discussing top trends in Asia in this critical emerging field.
Our extensive prosecution and enforcement success has established our reputation as the “fixers” when it comes to the China/Asia IP practice. We thrive in finding solutions in difficult situations where many others have tried and failed. We shine in providing innovative and creative approaches rather than simply informing clients that there is little to be done about stolen brands and rights. We’ve secured successes throughout Asia – the new frontier of the Wild West of the legal profession – while most firms continue to struggle to understand Asian law through translation.
Put simply, we’ve got the hardest and hottest market on earth figured out, so our clients can focus on doing business.
Eligon Expertise:
- Intellectual property (trademark, copyright, design patent): prosecution and management in Asia
- Brand creation, protection and enforcement (China, Asia Pacific, Asia)
- Licensing and Transactional
- Supply chain management
- Anticounterfeiting, local investigation and gray market issues
- Social media takedown (WeChat, Weibo, TikTok, PDD, etc.) and monitoring
- Customs recordal and seizure
- Assist brand to be formally recognized as “well known”
- Marketing & advertising
- Dispute resolution: litigation, arbitration and mediation
- Product/store design, trade dress and enforcement
- Domain (including .CN) monitoring and disputes
- Metaverse filings and prosecution
China is a wild west; IP strategies are like a whack-a-mole game. Often, the advice from counsel offers little guidance to business. Amy and her team are the rare exception. She does not just say, “This is how China does it,” she actually tells you why, and then provides legal strategy and steps that make sense. I can now finally have an intelligent conversation with my business executives about China, Greater China and the whole Asia. The team is also excellent when it comes to the worldwide portfolio. Thank you for being so responsive and proactive in managing and watching out our global portfolio! Nice to have you all as our partners!
“The Single Indispensable Source on China Trademark Law”
Partner Amy Hsiao is recognized as a thoughtleader in the area of trademark and copyright in China. Amy was selected by China’s former Deputy Secretary-General of China’s Trademark Association as the only Western attorney to work on a book involving in-depth analysis of top 26 landmark trademark cases.
Published by Wolters Kluwer, the book is viewed as China’s very first trademark textbook for the Western world and described as “the single indispensable source on China Trademark Law”.