On February 16, 2012 the Beijing office of Sheppard Mullin had a reception to celebrate the opening of new office space in China World Trade Center in the central business district. Guy Halgren welcomed our 120-plus guests. Prior to the reception we had a roundtable discussion on the Anti-Monopoly Law of China (“AML”). We had 18 participants, in-house counsel for major corporations as well as the German Chamber of Commerce. Our guest speaker, Mr. Zhang Yuqing, former director general counsel of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”), who headed the inter-agency group which developed the AML spoke on two topics which will probably be “hot” this year: a new regulation which will fine companies which didn’t report their transactions and went ahead with the transactions, and another regulation that deals with national security review. Gary Halling, head of Sheppard Mullin’s antitrust practice spoke about recent enforcement trends in the U.S, specifically with respect to cartels. Michael Zhang of Sheppard Mullin’s Shanghai office also attended and gave his views on the use of the VIE structure. The subsequent discussion among the participants was lively.

We hold such roundtable discussions periodically, where we invite government officials and representatives of companies to exchange ideas and ask questions in an informal, off-the-record setting. If you are interested in participating in future roundtable discussions please contact Becky Koblitz, email address: bkoblitz@sheppardmullin.com. Below are opening remarks by Becky Koblitz, Special Counsel, Beijing office of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP.

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