On 31st January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced “Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia (NCP)” outbreak is a Public Health Emergency (“PHEIC”). On 11th March 2020, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of WHO announced in a press conference in Geneva that the Covid-19 outbreak has become a global pandemic.

During this unprecedented health emergency created by the outbreak of COVID-19, Anderson & Anderson Team is committed to continuing to serve our clients. We are available to help address business, regulatory and legal issues that individuals or companies may face related to COVID-19.

Anderson has extensive experience in drafting and managing international contract related to products required particularly for COVID-19 issues. We can not only provide escrow services but also help manage payments, shipping documents and like to protect or parties to a transaction.

As for individuals, disputes over employment agreements, health care issues, salary, etc. under government’s quarantine orders are often raised. In this case, how to protect your rights in the workplace during the Coronavirus pandemic will be a great concern.

As for companies, questions often asked such as how to define your business activities under the impact of Coronavirus pandemic as a force majeure event or change of circumstances, or how to settle your contracting issues with the other party.

Anderson & Anderson’s attorneys have vast experience in various kinds of legal practice. We will provide you good legal information and tailored legal services based on our resources, the latest policy changes, new court procedures, and practice area updates. If you want to know more about COVID-19 information or our legal services, you may review the following two articles written by our attorneys:

• Force Majeure in Contract Law as a result of COVID-9
• Application of Force Majeure and Change of Circumstances caused by the Outbreak of Coronavirus on Contractual Performance

If you are in need of assistance, or you wish to schedule a consulting session, you may contact us by anderson@anallp.com .

Blockchains, cryptocurrency & Smart Contracts have the potential to transform business, government and society.

Financial institutions, in particular, are exploring the possibilities that these technologies offers them to streamline and automate many of their processes and to offer new products and services.

Cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin are the most high-profile applications of these technologies. However, the range of potential applications extends far beyond cryptocurrency and includes, for example, trade execution and settlement systems, trade finance, supply chain management, asset registration, identity management (including for anti-money laundering and know your client purposes) and corporate governance.

As financial institutions, governments, and companies move from research and development to deployment of blockchains, cyptocurrency, and smart contracts, they need to consider carefully the legal and regulatory implications of, and risks presented by, these transformative technologies.

Anderson's dedicated global FinTech group – comprising corporate, technology, banking, insurance, regulatory, intellectual property, data privacy/data protection, tax, disputes and competition lawyers – can help you analyze, manage and mitigate legal and regulatory risks associated with the use of distributed ledgers, blockchains, smart contracts, cryptocurrencies, and ICOs.

Modern conveniences have made banking and financing much more convenient than just going to your local bank and depositing money or taking out a loan. Many clients now operate with their bank accounts halfway across the globe. These conveniences have made financial transactions far more complicated and risky, while also increasing the opportunities for rewards and savings.

Our clients in banking and financing are a diverse range of institutions, commercial borrowers, and lessees. We have helped them release IPOs, sell bonds off-shore, buy and create financial leases for airplanes, finance large infrastructure projects, invest overseas, reorganize businesses, and collect debts. We can provide assistance with securities and other asset-backed financing, such as through releasing an IPO on stock exchanges or as a bond around the world.

Anderson & Anderson can work with you from the beginning with the due diligence report to creating, negotiating, and executing the final contracts.

Examples of the Firm’s Attorneys’ Work in Banking and Finance:

Managing Partner of Anderson & Anderson, Mr. Buxbaum has successfully defended the Citibank Shanghai branch against Wafangdian Ballbearing Company. For more details about this case, please find the link as follows:

1. The Dalian Verdict: A Groundbreaking Victory by Citibank in China Is Nothing Short of A Revolution 

2. Shanghai Ruling Positive Sign, Says Buxbaum

Employees are the core of any company. Companies rely on their employees to develop and achieve its goals. However, human relations are complex and the employer-employee relationship often poses challenges. Each country has its own set of laws, regulations and cultural mores that govern employee relations. In Asia, Anderson & Anderson’s attorneys have spent more than forty years working with local companies and international conglomerates to create harmonious workplaces where people want to work. We can help companies navigate the minefield of central and local regulations, and advise both local Asian and foreign owned companies on their rights and duties as employers. With experience advising on employee hiring and termination, creating complete benefit packages for a company’s workforce, responding to inquiries from relevant governmental organizations, and creating a company’s dispute resolution process, Anderson & Anderson lawyers are experienced practitioners in the labor law sector.

Over the past decades, we have rendered legal opinions and provided legal advice to our diverse client base including world-wide companies and domestic clients with respect to preparing Employment Agreements and solving labor disputes on behalf of both employee and employees.

Examples of the Firm's Attorneys' Work in Employment and Labor Law

• Represented foreign employees and foreign and domestic companies in China, Mongolia, Hong Kong and the USA;
• Drafted numerous Employment Contracts for prominent international mining companies;
• Provided legal advice to world-wide civil engineering and construction company about its internal labor issues;
• Advised one of Korea’s largest electronics companies concerning termination of a high-level employee in compliance with the employee’s employment agreement;
• Represented an American company in arbitration arising out of an employee’s claim for wrongful termination;
• Represented an ex-patriot employee’s claim for wrongful termination against a Hong Kong company;
• Handled numerous labor arbitration cases in China and Hong Kong;
• Assisted many corporations in visa processing for their employees in China, Mongolia, Hong Kong, and Macao.

Intellectual property in this day and age is of such importance that it must be protected at the start of any business venture. Intellectual property is an essential part of a company's competitive edge, and we understand its importance on a global scale as markets grow increasingly commoditized. We can help you maintain your edge from unscrupulous companies that would misappropriate your ideas and products. Anderson & Anderson was one of the first firms in Asia involved in protection of intellectual property and continues to be preeminent in this field among the world's international law firms. With offices across Asia, we are capable of handling jobs efficiently and cost-effectively across multiple countries.

We offer the service and experience to register and protect trademarks, patents and copyrights across Asia, America and other jurisdictions. Our clients can rest assured that we will zealously protect their intellectual property through every means necessary, including going to court. We have had important successes in many industries.

We offer legal advice and comments on the current IP laws in China, Mongolia, and other foreign countries. Recently, the Ulaanbaatar office presided over a meeting where Anderson & Anderson suggested several proposed amendments to the current IP laws. We have also been prominent in protecting IP in Mongolia. We have substantial experience in civil and criminal litigation for our clients, both domestic and foreign, in protecting their IP rights. Our clients range from the largest corporations in the world to small businesses and individuals, and each receives the same level of attention to protect their intellectual property.

Examples of the Firm's Attorneys' Work in Intellectual Property Law:

• Represented Microsoft and other large software companies in a leading case on copyright infringement in China that was broadcast nationally on Chinese television. [1994]
• Enforced Kellogg's intellectual property rights in China by obtaining an injunction preventing the use of their box design. [1994]
• Protected the trademark rights for the world’s largest soft-drink company in Mongolia.
• Assisted world's most prominent chewing gum, soap and fast food companies in IP protection in China.
• Successfully represented Harcourt Brace and MacMillian in infringement cases in China.
• Registered many trademarks, patents and designs in Mongolia, China, U.S.A. Hong Kong, Macau, Europe and other countries in Asia.
• Represented a large software Russian company in a leading case on trademark and copyright infringement in Mongolia that was broadcast on Mongolian television. [2015]

Our highly regarded, diverse litigation and dispute resolution practice, has achieved excellent results for clients in China, the United States, Mongolia, Hong Kong, Singapore and other nations. We have been recognized by judges and attorneys alike for our thorough, imaginative, and professional advocacy on behalf of our clients. With a strong history of vigorous courtroom advocacy on behalf of our clients, we are also mindful of occasions where our clients’ best interests are served by achieving a resolution through various forms of alternative dispute resolution rather than judicial proceedings.

Managing Partner David C. Buxbaum has been recognized for his experience and expertise in arbitration before the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, the CIETAC in China, American Arbitration Association,  etc. Buxbaum has also been an arbitrator for various organizations.

One of the fine examples of our experience in litigation and dispute resolution is that our managing partner David C. Buxbaum successfully represented respondents before the United States Supreme Court in the landmark case of Butz v. Economou, which eliminated personal immunity of federal officials in the Executive Branch from claims for damages arising from their constitutional torts.

Lawyers of Anderson have successfully represented and supported clients in numerous cases in various jurisdictions. Our attorneys possess extensive litigation experience in both traditional and emerging areas of the law: and have been very prominent in IP litigation.

Examples of the Firm's Attorneys' Work in Litigation and Dispute Resolution:

• Obtained a judgment and an attachment of assets in China resulting from an arbitration award rendered in the United States against a Chinese company resulting in US $11,200,000 settlement.
• Represented Plaintiff in a multi-million dollar claim for damages arising from the purchase of customized manufacturing equipment.
• Obtained an award for damages for a Swiss oil company in a matter before the London Court of International Arbitration.
• Favorably settled a European bank’s claim arising from an Asian construction company’s breach of a Loan and Pledge Agreement.  
• Successfully arbitrated a tobacco company‘s claim for breach of contract at the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre. 
• Favorably settled a Commercial Airline‘s claim for breach of contract in arbitration in Sweden.
• Litigated real estate disputes in China, Mongolia and the U.S.A.
• Represented leading software companies, including Microsoft in leading IP cases in China.
• Represented several companies in IP litigation in the USA.
• Successfully handled numerous infringement actions in China, Mongolia, Hong Kong and elsewhere.

Corporate mergers, acquisitions and reorganizations is one of Anderson & Anderson’s most vibrant practice areas. We routinely assist clients with structuring, negotiating, documenting and closing complicated, and often cross-border, mergers and acquisitions. Our considerable investment of time and energy towards understanding the various sectors within which our clients operate, equips our attorneys with a capacity to provide valuable insight for our clients. We have represented parties on all sides of agreements, including targets, bidders, minority shareholders and majority shareholders. Our broad expertise also includes negotiated mergers, joint ventures/strategic alliances and majority/minority investments.

Corporate transactions demand structured and advanced planning to maximize potential profit and mitigate risk. Whether a large corporation or a small business, we make sure that our clients have an understanding of all regulatory and governance issues. Financing, taxation, labor and intellectual property issues must be thought through carefully.

At Anderson & Anderson, our mergers & acquisitions specialists offer local expertise in Asia and as well as the United States. Our lawyers work together closely to identify all the risks, coordinate complex acquisitions and mergers, address local requirements, perform due diligence investigations, prepare documentation, and deliver exceptional legal advice to our clients.

Examples of the Firm’s Attorneys’ Work in Mergers, Acquisitions & Reorganizations:

• Assisted a Chinese company’s acquisition of shares of an Israeli company by stock purchase;
• Drafted and executed a Series A Convertible Preferred Share Purchase Agreement and a Series A Convertible Preferred Investor Rights Agreement on behalf of a US company;
• Facilitated a Hong Kong company’s multi-million dollar investment and acquisition of a US company’s newly-issued series of stock;
• Drafted and executed a US company’s Articles of Association and Company Bylaws;
• Completed numerous due diligence reports and undertook all contract preparation for acquisitions of companies in America, China, Hong Kong, Mongolia, Israel, Europe and elsewhere;
• Assisted and advised clients in developing strategic plans and benefits in investment projects;
• Assisted clients in incorporating special purpose vehicles in various locations, including Hong Kong, U.S.A., Luxembourg, B.V.I., etc. for investment projects;
• Facilitated a merger of mining and energy companies in Mongolia;
• Handled foreign acquisition of company shares in China, Mongolia and the U.S.A.

The exploration, mining, and use of natural resources makes modern life possible. Anderson & Anderson is uniquely positioned to assist companies and corporations around the world in two of the fastest growing markets for these resources, China and Mongolia. Our work in the mining sector has also brought us around the world to Korea, Canada and the U.S.

As the first international law firm in independent Mongolia and one of the first foreign law firms in modern China, Anderson & Anderson is ready to assist companies by working with them from due diligence through acquisition of mining rights. Mongolia has proven itself to be a country rich in natural resources and politically unique as one of the youngest democracies in the world. Particularly, the country has some of the largest and richest known deposits of coal and copper in the world. Deposits of uranium, gold, copper, molybdenum, and crude oil have already been discovered.  China's rich resources are very well-known.

With much more of Mongolia left to be explored, the country's actual deposits of other minerals have yet to be determined. Anderson & Anderson has already had people working in Mongolia for twenty-four years and in China for  more than forty years.

Anderson & Anderson has vast experience in mineral resources and energy laws and has undertaken all legal aspects of mining work on many occasions, including registering mining companies, applying for exploration and mining licenses, acquiring mining licenses, acquiring mining companies, undertaking legal due diligence on mines, mining licenses, etc., for major international mining corporations to small and medium sized legal entities. Previously, the firm has dealt with famous global and local mining companies.

Our firm has been very active in mining and energy projects and Anderson & Anderson's managing partner, David C. Buxbaum, currently serves as Honorary Counsel to the Independent Power Producers Forum (IPPF), an international organization based in Hong Kong.  In addition, our attorneys have helped Arco in its natural gas project off Hainan in Yinggehai with contractual negotiations and legal advice and represented Vedco in contractual negotiations and undertaking legal work regarding oil equipment and exploration.

Anderson's legal publication have been featured in various publications such as the Mining Law Review.  Topics covered include an overview of the general legal system and market of Mongolia, laws on security market and investment, and other tax considerations. To download the article, please click here.

Examples of the Firm's Attorneys' Work in Mining:

• Performed many due diligence investigations for the acquisition of mining companies in Mongolia.
• Assisted legal counsel for one of Mongolia's largest mining companies;
• Represented a financier in its investment in a Chinese-owned gold mining company that operates in Mongolia;
• Provided legal assistance for a natural gas project in Hainan, China;
• Undertook preparation of numerous contracts in the acquisition of mining companies and mining licenses in Mongolia and other jurisdictions;
• Assisted Asia mining companies in taking their shares public on the Canadian stock exchange;
• Assisted European banks in drafting loan agreements for major mining companies in Asia;
• Undertook preparation of numerous contracts in the acquisition of mining companies (domestic and international) and mining exploration and operation licenses in Mongolia and other jurisdictions;
• Assisted Asian and European companies to establish a mining company in Mongolia.

Whether you own a single building or hundreds across the globe or own a hotel or conglomerate, property transactions are local and subject to the varying laws of each country. Who actually owns the property? Are there any liens or restrictions on use of the property? How much is the property actually worth? Whom are you buying from or selling to, and what else do you need to know about the person you are going into business with? Can a foreigner acquire land or land-use rights in China, Mongolia, USA, Hong Kong, the Philippines or some other jurisdiction?

These questions are just the beginning of a list of serious questions when starting a real estate venture. Because Anderson & Anderson has been working in Asia for decades, we have prepared the ground-work for what must be done. We have local attorneys who know their way with the local laws, languages, cultural rules, and political uncertainties. In China and Mongolia, we help open the doors for real estate investment. Our firm was the first international law firm to open an office in modern China and independent Mongolia, and we have been working with clients there for many decades, especially assisting foreign investors or individuals in purchasing or financing a variety of properties in China and Mongolia. With respect to the Land Law of Mongolia, please click here to read the article.

Our attorneys' experience ranges broadly from offshore companies acquiring factories and hotel complexes to foreign individuals buying or leasing a residential property. We are used to working closely with legal counsel, whether they are in-house or outside. We can provide a variety of services for our clients in real estate. We assist in developing and structuring projects, as well as negotiating any desired financing. Because of the transnational expertise of our firm, we are adept and experienced in handling cross-border transactions.

Examples of the Firm's Attorneys' Work in Real Estate Law:

• Assisted major corporations in securing land-use rights in China for housing and commercial developments in second- and third-tier cities;
• Worked with in-house legal counsel of a large international fast-food chain to obtain real estate in China for its retail locations;
• Represented the China Export-Import Bank in financing real estate in Mongolia;
• Assisted numerous companies in acquiring land rights and real property in China, Mongolia and the U.S.A;
• Undertook government procedures on behalf of project corporations to acquire land use rights in China and Mongolia;
• Served as facilitator and counsel for the Seller of trophy property in Manhattan;
• Litigated real estate disputes in China, Mongolia and the U.S.A;
• Assisted numerous Chinese nationals to rightfully reclaim family-owned property that had been occupied by others, seized by the government, or otherwise distrained.