Thursday 8th April 2010

Dear Reader,

We will close the opinion poll on class action rights for Hong Kong at 6pm tomorrow (Friday). Please vote! Your PIN is at the top of this e-mail. Total results will be sent to the Law Reform Commission, without names.

NEW ARTICLES
Cooked auctions in HK
A Court of Appeal judgment overturns fraud convictions for bid-rigging for cooked food stalls at Tai Po Hui Market and makes clear that bid-rigging is perfectly legal. We call for the proposed competition law to make bid-rigging, price-fixing and other anti-competitive behaviour criminal offences. Civil tribunals won't cut it, not least because they cannot fine humans. In the meantime, the Government should include no-rigging warranties as a requirement for all tenders, so that they can prosecute for fraud.

Government supermarket vouchers
Supermarket vouchers are often used as a sales incentive in HK, for anything from minibonds to TVs. The Government's last proposal for a competition law would still allow behaviour such as resale price maintenance, which the EU outlaws because it is "severely anti-competitive". Have you ever wondered how much those supermarket vouchers actually cost? A government tender to buy them reveals the answer. (27-Mar-10)

RECENT ARTICLES
Class actions for HK
In a potentially huge step forward for access to justice, the Law Reform Commission proposes a class action system for HK. The key issue is litigation funding. Rather than a government-sponsored gatekeeper fund, we need a free-market approach, with contingent legal fees and the abolition of archaic laws against champerty and maintenance, to allow self-funded lawyers and third party funders to bear the risks of loser-pays-costs. Take our opinion poll and tell them what you think!

Pass it on!
This free newsletter goes to over 19,000 practitioners, issuers, regulators and investors in Hong Kong's markets. If you enjoy it, then please invite a friend to find out what they are missing and subscribe!

Visit our archives, and do your homework before you invest.