We’ve blogged about legal translations in the context of global M&A market, and about Chinese translations. Any attorney specializing in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) should advice clients planning any merger – even between companies from the same country, to find out whether or not the would-be partner is exporting to China or manufacturing products there.

Why? Starting in 2008, China implemented its first antitrust law, allowing Chinese authorities to intervene in high-profile international M&A deals. For example when the Japanese company Mitsubishi Rayon moved to purchase Lucite, another Japanese company, the Chinese authorities held up the proposed merger on the concern that as both companies had manufacturing plants in China, their merging would give them a 64 percent share of that particular Chinese market.

Although based on the US antitrust law, the Chinese law has problems in how it is administered. For this reason, it is essential not only to have an English language translation of the law, but also have a Chinese into English translation of any and all documents related to a M&A.

Up Next: Translation, Foreign Language Ability and Jury Excusal