Shanghai has adopted a series of rules and new policies to create a favorable legal environment for the World Expo it will host next year, a city official told the Expo legal forum on December 26.

Expo legal forum is held in Shanghai. [en.expo2010]

Such rules and policies deal with a wide range of specific areas such as protection of intellectual property rights, Expo participants' registration, freight passing through the Customs, inspection and quarantine, tax exemptions, impost and distribution of promotion materials, the entry and exit of personnel, use of overseas-registered vehicles and temporary driver's permits.

China even passed a bill in 2004 to protect the emblem of World Expo 2010, the first of its kind in the Expo's history, said Zhou Hanmin, deputy director of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai Executive Committee.

The city has also launched a number of exhibitions and publicity activities to raise the awareness among local residents about protection of intellectual property rights related to the World Expo.

Zhou pointed out that during the past seven years of working for the Expo preparation, Shanghai has benefited a great deal from its endeavor to improve the legal environment for the World Expo 2010.

"The city has deemed hosting the World Expo as an important opportunity to help bring the local legal system and rule-by-law to a new and higher level," the deputy director added.

                                                                                                      Source: China Daily