China mulls revising Company Law to guard equal property rights

BEIJING, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- A draft revision to the Company Law was tabled before Chinese lawmakers for the third reading on Monday.

The draft revision, submitted to a session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, focuses on strengthening the equal protection of property rights and regulating the responsibilities of controlling shareholders and actual controllers of companies.

On protecting equal property rights, the draft revision stipulates that smaller shareholders have the right to require the company to purchase the shares of the controlling shareholders at a reasonable price, on condition that the controlling shareholders abuse their rights or severely harm the interests of the company or other shareholders.

The revision also adds punishment for fraudulence concerning registered capital and information of companies.

China's current Company Law was enacted in 1993 and has undergone multiple revisions, including a major revision in 2005.