Unit 1 Legal Environment of International Trade Text I General Principles of International Trade -To have an overview of the general principles of international

Unit 1 Legal Environment of International Trade

Text I General Principles of International Trade -To have an overview of the general principles of

international trade Text II Government Regulation of International Trade

-To understand the means of the government regulation of international trade

Typical Sentence Patterns: Legislative Text (I)

Text I General Principles of International Trade

Useful expressions: enter into, party to (an international contract), be final and binding on (both parties), sales contract, purchase price, title to (goods)

Terms: domestic country, host country, choice of law clause, arbitration, letter of credit (L/C), tariff, special drawing rights (SDRs), export sale, agency, distributorship, licensing, franchising, wholly-owned subsidiary, double taxation, joint venture

Proper names: WTO, GATT, CISG, UCC, EU, the Treaty of Maastricht, the Treaty of Rome, IMF, World Bank, OPEC

Terms and proper names

domestic / home country 投资公司母国-the country under whose laws the investing corporation is created or is headquartered

host country 东道国-the country where the investing corporation operates


choice of law clause1. What is a choice of law clause?

-a provision in an international contract that sets forth which law will govern if a dispute arises

法律选择条款2. Why is this clause necessary in international contract?

3. How is a treaty significant in international business?


arbitration

1. What is arbitration?

-the settling of a dispute by an arbitrator or an arbitration tribunal; the decision of the arbitrator or tribunal is known as an “award”

2. What are the advantages of arbitration over litigation in settling disputes in international business?

3. What is the legal effect of an arbitral award?


letter of credit

1. What is L/C?

-document provided e.g., for the exporter by the importer, so that the exporter can draw his draft upon a bank

*draft-an order for the payment of a sum of money

2. Why is L/C commonly used in international transactions?


WTO 世界贸易组织 -It is an international body established in 1995 to supervise and encourage international trade.

An international trade organization was proposed following the Bretton Woods conference in 1944, but was never set up, the GATT was started instead. GATT organized the Uruguay Round trade talks, which concluded in 1994 by setting up the WTO to take over its functions in encouraging multilateral trade in goods and services.


the Uruguay Round 乌拉圭回合-the last (8th) round of trade talks under the GATT; this round started in 1986 and finished in 1994.

Bretton woods 布列顿 / 布雷顿森林（会议）-The venue of a conference held in 1944 to discuss the new international monetary arrangements to be set up after the Second World War. This led to the creation of the IMF and IBRD or World Bank.

tariff 进口关税 -In economics a tariff was originally a schedule of taxes on

imports; it now refers to the actual import duties.


GATT 《关税与贸易总协定》 -An agency of the UN, based in Geneva, founded in 1948

to promote international trade. GATT successfully concluded several rounds of multilateral negotiations to reduce world tariffs, but was unable to prevent the spread of non-tariff barriers to trade. The last round of GATT negotiations, the Uruguay Round, finished in 1994. This included measures affecting trade in agricultural products and services, and intellectual property rights, all of which had been omitted from earlier rounds. It also led to the replacement of GATT by the WTO.


CISG 《联合国国际货物销售合同公约》UCC （美国）统一商法典EU 欧盟Treaty of Maastricht 马约

-A treaty concluded in 1993 between members of the EC. This changed its name to EU, and set out a program for progress towards a European Monetary Union (EMU) and the creation of a European Central Bank (ECB).


Treaty of Rome 罗马条约-It is the treaty which set up the EEC in 1958. This was signed by the original six members: Belgium, France, (West) Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The treaty set up the various institutions of the EEC, including the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the European Court of Justice, and its terms have been accepted by members joining subsequently, including UK.


IMF 国际货币基金组织SDR 特别提款权 - 国际货币基金组织为补充成员国国际储备不足而创设

的成员国在基金普通提款权之外的一种使用基金的特别权利。

World Bank (IBRD) 世界银行 / 国际复兴开发银行OPEC 石油输出国组织export sales 出口贸易foreign sales agency 国外销售代理


foreign distributorship 国外分销 licensing 许可证贸易 -Allowing another firm, for payment, to make use of a pa

tent, trademark or know-how. This is a method of profiting by intellectual property without investment on the scale necessary to exploit an innovatory idea for oneself. The other possibility would be to sell the intellectual property to somebody who could afford to exploit it, but licensing allows the investor to retain ownership.


franchising 特许经营 -The system by which independent firms are authorized t

o use a common business system. This may include the use of a brand name, designs, patents and operating systems, and provision of equipment, training, capital, or credit by the franchiser. This system combines the advantages of incentive for the operating firms and economies of scale in research, development, and advertising for the franchiser. The holders of franchises are subject to supervision of their operations in order to maintain the reputation of the franchised product.


wholly-owned subsidiary 全资子公司-a “foreign” corporation organized under the laws of a foreign host country, but owned and controlled by the parent corporation in the home country

double taxation 双重课税 -The collection of taxes on the same income by two countries. This is

liable to occur when an economic asset earns income in one country but is owned in another. If countries tax both the profits of firms operating in their territories, and the incomes of their residents, double taxation will occur unless there is an agreement between the two countries to prevent it. Double taxation is thought to be undesirable as it hinders international factor mobility.


joint venture 合资企业 A business where the provision of risk capital is shared b

etween two or more firms. This is a method of organization often adopted for projects which are too large or too risky for any one firm to attempt alone. The firms joining in such a venture may provide different forms of expertise: for example it is common for firms investing abroad to seek local partners. Foreign firms can provide technical expertise, but locals have advantages in familiarity with local conditions and business practices, in marketing and in dealing with national governments and the labor force.

tspuser

joint venture

Forms of international business

1. trade -exporting

-direct exporting: through agents or distributors -indirect exporting: through ETCs or EMCs

-importing (global sourcing)2. licensing (esp. franchising)3. foreign investment-wholly-owned subsidiary-joint venture-acquisition / merger

Text II Government Regulation of International Trade

Terms and proper namesThe Lanham Trademark Act

It is found in Title 15 of the U.S. Code and contains the federal statutes governing trademark law in the United States. However, this act is not the exclusive law governing U.S. trademark law, since both common law and state statutes also control some aspects of trademark protection. This index (http://www.bitlaw.com/source/15usc/) contains links to each of the sections of the Lanham, and was last updated in March, 2000.


Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works

It was adopted at Berne in 1886, first established the recognition of copyrights between sovereign nations. Prior to the adoption of the Berne Convention, nations would often refuse to recognize the works of foreign nationals as copyrighted. Thus, for instance, a work published in London by a British national would be protected by copyright in the United Kingdom, but freely reproducible by France; likewise, a work published in Paris by a French national would be protected by copyright in France, but freely reproducible in the United Kingdom.

The Berne Convention provided that each contracting state would recognize as copyrighted works authored by nationals of other contracting states. Copyright under the Berne Convention is automatic: no registration is required, nor is the inclusion of a copyright notice. The Berne Convention provided for a minimum term of copyright protection of the life of the author plus fifty years, but parties were free to provide longer terms of copyright protection.


Sherman Antitrust Act, 1890, first measure passed by the U.S. Congress to prohibit trusts; it was named for Senator John Sherman. Prior to its enactment, various states had passed similar laws, but they were limited to intrastate businesses. Finally opposition to the concentration of economic power in large corporations and in combinations of business concerns led Congress to pass the Sherman Act. The act, based on the constitutional power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce, declared illegal every contract, combination (in the form of trust or otherwise), or conspiracy in restraint of interstate and foreign trade. A fine of $5,000 and imprisonment for one year were set as the maximum penalties for violating the act.


antitrust 反托拉斯 Trusts and monopolies are concentrations of we

alth in the hands of a few. To prevent trusts from creating restraints on trade or commerce and reducing competition, Congress passed the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890. The Sherman Act was designed to maintain economic liberty, and to eliminate restraints on trade and competition. The Sherman Act is the main source of antitrust law.


dumping 倾销 If a company exports a product at a price lower than the

price it normally charges on its own home market, it is said to be “dumping” the product.

(export subsidy 出口补贴 countervailing duty 反补贴税 )


Section 301 （美国） 301条款-One of the most important weapons in the U.S. arsenal against foreign trade barriers and unfair trade practices is commonly known to business-people and lawyers alike as Section 301. It refers to the provisions found in that section of the Trade Act of 1974, although it has been amended by Congress three times since then. The latest version of Section 301 is based on the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988. The law permits the U.S. to retaliate unilaterally against other countries—not against foreign companies—that violate GATT, that are unfair in restricting the import of U.S. goods or services, or that maintain unreasonable or discriminatory policies or practices.

Documents

Unit 1 Legal Environment of International Trade Text I General Principles of International Trade -To have an overview of the general principles of international