The Peter Humphrey/Yu Yingzeng Case and Business Intelligence in China

40 Pages Posted: 8 Aug 2015

See all articles by Donald C. Clarke

Donald C. Clarke

George Washington University - Law School

Date Written: 2015

Abstract

The case of Peter Humphrey and Yu Yingzeng, convicted in China on August 2014 on charges of unlawful acquisition of citizens’ personal information, raises important issues about Chinese law. A narrow but important issue is how Chinese law draws the line between lawful and unlawful acquisition of information, a practice routinely carried out by businesses and individuals. This article examines the trial transcript and judgment in the Humphrey/Yu case and finds that it sheds regrettably little light on what remains a murky question. A broader issue is whether the Chinese legal system can be counted on to operate in a fair and impartial manner. This article presents the results of a study of all reported cases in Shanghai (ninety-two cases) involving the same provision of the Criminal Law that was the basis of the Humphrey/Yu conviction. It finds that the Humphrey/Yu sentences are outliers relative to other cases with comparable facts. In particular, Humphrey’s sentence of 30 months’ imprisonment was by far the heaviest sentence ever meted out by Shanghai courts, even though the circumstances seem conspicuously less serious than those of many other cases where lesser sentences were imposed.

Keywords: China, Chinese law, data privacy, data protection, criminal, information

JEL Classification: K14, K20, K41, K42

Suggested Citation

Clarke, Donald C., The Peter Humphrey/Yu Yingzeng Case and Business Intelligence in China (2015). GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2015-26, GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2015-26, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2640737 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2640737

Donald C. Clarke (Contact Author)

George Washington University - Law School ( email )

2000 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20052
United States

HOME PAGE: http://donaldclarke.net

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