Signs of Progress in Using Lawsuits to Protect Consumers

(Beijing) – Two years after a new law was enacted to allow civil groups to file lawsuits on behalf of the public, consumers have rarely seen the legal weapon used to protect them.

But this may be changing. In early July, a court in Shanghai accepted suits filed by the Shanghai Consumer Rights Protection Commission, a semi-governmental non-profit organization, against smartphone manufacturers Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp. Ltd.