Analysis On Legal Protection Of Securities Transaction Information

As a form of information data, securities transaction information has great commercial value in modern market. While its legal nature or legal definition in China’s legal system is vague, even absent. Such fact has triggered a series of prominent problems. Judges hold different opinions on the definition of legal nature and application of laws when they deal with disputes on securities transaction information. In market practice, information dealers, data administrators and information holders usually adopt an evasive attitude toward real legal conflicts and always try to locate some temporary solutions which cannot solve the problems involved in their business once for all and cannot improve the wholesome of China’s information legal systems at all.Through a comparative analysis on the different legal approaches adopted by different jurisdictions to the legal nature of securities transaction data, such as intellectual property mode, traditional property law mode, sui generis right mode, etc., this article takes an observation on the advantages and disadvantages of each modes against the backgrounds of Chinese positive laws and regulations. The major standpoint and conclusion of this article is:1. Intellectual property mode would falter the basic principles of the current Chinese intellectual property legal systems which have been deemed mature and relatively consummate;2. Traditional property law mode is contrary to the background that China’s stock exchange was actually established and administrated by government; and3. Sui generis right mode cannot integrate into China’s current intellectual property law system and will bring new legal problems. After a judge and weigh on the pros and cons of aforementioned approaches, this article provides a fire-new path to give a proper solution to the questions-"Quasi Public Property Right Approach" which means securities transaction information shall be defined as a type of "quasi public property" and shall be governed and protected by laws in the mode of "quasi public property right". This new approach has three main advantages over others. First, it has fully considered the basic pattern of the value realization of securities transaction information, i.e. incorporeality and convergence; second, it has given a full respect to China’s positive legal system, especially intellectual property laws. This approach goes a step further on legal study of securities transaction information law or even information/data law in the premise of not overturning China’s current intellectual property laws; third, it has fully examined the background that China’s stock exchange market is organized and supervised by government. The "quasi public property mode" has taken inspirations from economic analysis, which made it better reveal the true operational logic of market economy. Last but not least, this new approach has done a new exploration on China’s legal protection mechanism on securities transaction information and also provides several legal advices with solid feasibilities, including minor revisions to the current PRC Securities Law, PRC Real Property Law and PRC Tort Law, and also suggests an optimization of the execution and disputes resolution mechanism of securities information license agreements as well as the roles and legal relationships among various subjects during the information licensing.This article will be divided into four parts. The first part introduces the concept and classification of securities transaction information, and analyses whether securities transaction information should be used in an absolutely public manner based on the economic theory of public goods, and then comes to a conclusion that "securities transaction information should be regarded as a type of quasi public goods". This conclusion serves as an economics basis for the legal protection of securities transaction information. Moreover, this section briefly describes China’s current legal system in securities transaction information, which draws forth some major problems in the current system for later analysis.The second part mainly gives a comparative study on the existing legal systems in securities transaction information in the world today, and also introduces several main academic views on the issue. By discussing legislations and legal practices in Europe, the United States, Hong Kong and Taiwan, this part analyzes the pros and cons of various models of legal rules in order to seek some useful reference to improve China’s legal system of securities transaction information.The third part mainly discusses the current situation of securities information’s market flow in China, and echoes China’s major problems highlighted in the first part. By comparing the simulate results of adoptions of different modes in China, this part has a in-depth discussion on China’s selection and implementation of a proper legal arrangement of securities transaction information. At the end of this part, a proper choice and some implementation suggestions are put forward to meet China’s actual needs.The fourth part is a brief summary of the content and opinions of this paper.