04
2026-01
During the performance of a commercial franchise contract, the franchisee incurs expenses such as store rental fees, renovation costs, and procurement costs for supplies. After the contract is terminated, the parties typically dispute how these related expenses should be handled. Franchisees often rely on the provisions of Article 566 of the Civil Code to claim compensation from the franchisor for their incurred expense losses. Due to the special nature of commercial franchising and the lack of clear statutory provisions regarding the scope of losses that franchisees can claim, there remains some controversy in judicial practice over the determination of compensation for franchisees’ losses.
2026-01-04
04
2026-01
In the current context of frequent commercial disputes, property preservation—a crucial judicial measure for ensuring the enforcement of court judgments—is widely employed throughout litigation proceedings. Meanwhile, property preservation liability insurance, a commonly used tool for applicants to transfer risk, often finds itself embroiled in controversy alongside these disputes. Drawing on cases I have handled as counsel, this article explores the identification and defense of property preservation damage liability disputes from the perspective of insurance companies.
2026-01-04
04
2026-01
Perspective | An Analysis of the Path to Adding Shareholders as Enforced Parties
When a shareholder is added as an enforced party in an enforcement procedure, since the shareholder’s liability is determined without prior trial, the principle of legality of grounds must be strictly adhered to. This article analyzes and discusses the common approaches for adding corporate shareholders as enforced parties.
2026-01-04
04
2026-01
In recent years, as China’s “dual-carbon” strategy has been deepened, the wind power industry—playing a crucial role as a key component of clean energy—has entered a period of rapid development. Against the backdrop of continuous advancements in wind power technology, the structure of wind turbine towers is undergoing a significant shift from traditional steel towers to concrete towers (hereinafter referred to as “hybrid towers”). Thanks to their advantages—including greater structural height, superior stability, and longer service life—concrete towers are particularly well-suited for low-wind-speed regions and applications involving high tower structures, making them a critical component of the next-generation wind power technology. However, the rapid growth of the hybrid-tower industry has also given rise to numerous legal challenges and compliance risks. On the one hand, the supply of hybrid towers involves multiple complex stages—from design and production to transportation, installation, and maintenance—resulting in long supply chains, high technological barriers, and substantial capital investments; individual project contracts often amount to hundreds of millions of yuan. On the other hand, the legal framework, technical standards, and regulatory policies in this field remain incomplete, exposing enterprises to significant legal risks during their operations. According to incomplete statistics, over the past three years, the number of disputes in the wind power hybrid-tower sector has grown by an average of 50% annually, with the average value of each dispute exceeding 50 million yuan. Moreover, the types of disputes have become increasingly diverse and complex. Consequently, compliance has become critically important throughout the supply chain of wind power hybrid towers.
2026-01-04
31
2025-12
Commercial confusion is a typical form of unfair competition. It not only severely damages the business reputation and economic interests of operators but also infringes upon the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, thereby disrupting the functioning of the market and hindering the establishment of a healthy competitive market order. Article 7, Paragraph 1 of China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law lists typical acts of confusion involving commercial identifiers. All commercial identifiers protected under the Anti-Unfair Competition Law share a common characteristic: they must have a certain degree of influence. The requirement that protected commercial identifiers possess “a certain degree of influence” stems from the fact that only such identifiers can generate distinctiveness—and it is precisely the distinctive function of commercial identifiers that the Anti-Unfair Competition Law seeks to protect. However, the Anti-Unfair Competition Law provides little detailed explanation regarding what constitutes “a certain degree of influence.” Consequently, accurately defining “a certain degree of influence” has become an urgent issue to address, in order to resolve the practical enforcement and judicial challenges arising from the abstract nature and lack of clear interpretation of the law’s provisions and to ensure the proper application of the Anti-Unfair Competition Law.
2025-12-31
31
2025-12
Perspective | Risk Prevention for MDT (Multidisciplinary Team) Fee Collection
The term “multidisciplinary consultation” is translated from “Multidisciplinary Team (MDT).” Different domestic documents use slightly varying terms to refer to MDT. For example, the “National Technical Specifications for Medical Service Items (2023)” translates it as “multidisciplinary outpatient consultation,” while “China’s Hospital Quality and Safety Management—Parts 3–6: Medical Assurance—Multidisciplinary Joint Diagnosis and Treatment (MDT)” uses the term “multidisciplinary joint diagnosis and treatment.” The “Guidelines for Organization and Implementation of MDT (First Edition)” translates it as “multidisciplinary comprehensive diagnosis and treatment,” and the “Price List for Medical Service Items of Public Medical Institutions in Shandong Province (2023 Edition)” refers to it as “multidisciplinary consultation.” Although these different documents employ varying translations, their definitions of the concept remain largely consistent: for patients with difficult or complex diseases, two or more experts from relevant disciplines jointly examine the patient, take a detailed medical history, review laboratory and imaging data, discuss and analyze the patient’s condition, conduct a comprehensive assessment of the patient’s illness, and determine the optimal integrated treatment plan.
2025-12-31
31
2025-12
The essence of disputes over the encroachment of mineral resources by construction projects lies in achieving a legal balance between the property rights of mining right holders and the public interest in infrastructure development. Judicial practice exhibits significant disagreements on key issues such as the criteria for determination and the scope of compensation, leading to a pronounced phenomenon of inconsistent judgments in similar cases.
2025-12-31
31
2025-12
Company A and Company B entered into a Special Subcontract for Construction Engineering, under which the scope of the subcontracted works includes all tasks, responsibilities, and obligations stipulated in the bidding documents for installation works, the bill of quantities for installation works, and the construction contract. The payment terms for the project are as follows: 60% of the completed work volume (excluding provisional sums) shall be paid upon completion of the foundation work up to the elevation of ±0.00; 75% of the completed work volume (excluding provisional sums) shall be paid after the project is fully completed; 85% of the completed work volume (excluding provisional sums) shall be paid upon successful acceptance of the project; and within one year after the completion of the project audit and final settlement, 95% of the audited value shall be paid, with the remaining balance serving as the warranty deposit. Subsequently, the two parties signed a supplementary agreement, under which they agreed that Company A would make the final settlement to Company B at 77% of the audited value approved by the auditing entity for this project, while the remaining 23% of the audited value would be retained as management fees for the project.
2025-12-31
30
2025-12
On December 26, amidst the cold of late winter, a warm and cozy atmosphere prevailed at Zhongcheng Qingtai’s Jinan office. The fourth-quarter 2025 “Winter Sounds Special Mixology Bar,” jointly hosted by the Financial Third Department, the Capital Markets Department, and the Civil Department, kicked off with great fanfare, offering lawyers—a group busy throughout the year—a “chill Friday night” brimming with artistic ambiance and heartwarming interactions. Through music and joyful gatherings, the event paid tribute to their hard work, while special cocktails and laughter warmed up the chilly winter days.
2025-12-30
30
2025-12
On December 28, the 7th Lawyers’ Basketball Tournament of the Jinan Lawyers Association reached its climactic showdown. After fierce competition in the group stage and successive victories in the elimination rounds, the Zhongcheng Qingtai Jinan Office basketball team, fueled by their tenacious competitive spirit, ultimately secured third place—a record-breaking achievement in the tournament’s history.
2025-12-30
Zhongcheng Qingtai Jinan Region
Address: Floor 55-57, Jinan China Resources Center, 11111 Jingshi Road, Lixia District, Jinan City, Shandong Province
