Part II of II - What you should do
This is the second of a two-part legal update regarding Hong Kong’s new competition law, which received its third and final reading last night (14 June) in the Legislative Council today, paving the way for enactment. In our earlier legal update on this topic here, we highlighted key aspects of the law that all businesses who operate or sell into Hong Kong should be aware of. In this Part II, we provide high-level recommendations regarding the steps that businesses should now take in advance of enforcement of the law’s key prohibitions - the keys aspects of which are referenced in the diagram below and then further explained in subsequent pages.
Timing expectations for implementation of the law and how this impacts prudent compliance steps:
Click here to view diagram.
Further explanation of our recommendations:
Click here to view table.
BUT there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach…
Of course, different businesses will need different forms of, and approaches to, competition law compliance. Some businesses that have been operating in or selling into foreign jurisdictions with actively enforced competition laws for many years may already be very familiar with relevant compliance requirements, and may already have some appropriate policies and procedures in place within their corporate group. For these businesses, the priority may be to tailor pre-existing compliance principles, policies and guidance documents to ensure they reflect the unique aspects of the Hong Kong law. For other businesses, such as Hong Kong-focused businesses whose trading activities have never previously been subject to a competition law, a more comprehensive ‘ground up’ approach comprising many or all of the above steps will be more appropriate.
