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Johnny Neihu's Mailbag

Saturday, Jun 09, 2007, Page 8

The etiquette of business

Dear Johnny,

My name is M. I am the assistant to Mr B, who is a very well known portrait painter worldwide. I am asking with respect for your help in understanding the laws of business and social etiquette in Taiwan.

Mr B is having trouble in obtaining payment from a well-known society lady by the name of Ms X to the sum of US$11,000 for two portraits.

One portrait was of the vice president of the firm Y Ltd, of which Ms X was vice chairman, and the other was of her father, who was a prominent Chinese banker.

Ms X admits on paper that she has received the paintings and that she owes him money. She is, however, neglecting to complete the commission by paying her bill.

I would greatly appreciate your insight and knowledge.

With many thanks,

M.

Johnny replies: Needless to say, dear readers, I had to mask the names of the people and the company to run this letter.

M, there are a number of things that have to be said about the laws of business and social etiquette in Taiwan.

The first is that we have a kind of professional go-between that can facilitate communication between unhappy parties such as yourself and people who may have done them wrong. If the communication breaks down, this person can also arrange for the non-payer to be brought before a court. This go-between is known as a "lawyer."

There are lots of lawyers in Taiwan, though they charge a lot of money, and you might find it hard to end up with much of the cash for the paintings after legal expenses.

As far as social etiquette is concerned, you need not worry too much about cultural differences between East and West.

If Taiwanese people find out that they have not been paid for a good or a service, the usual reaction is: "Get Second Uncle and his friends on the line. Don't forget the baseball bats."

But if you want to go one step further and leave an indelible impression on your customer, I recommend you get in touch with my associate "Knuckles" Chiang in Chiayi. He knows a number of people who might be able to recover your money plus generous interest using far more intimate methods.

The problem is, you would need to fork out a lot more than US$11,000 to secure their "premium services."

So you would still come out behind, and even after an initial period of exhiliration, you might end up with a permanent blot on your conscience.

The final suggestion I have for you would be to come to Taiwan to launch a rescue bid for the painting. You might find it a bit intimidating, but you might also save the most money. Two return economy airfares from the US, a week or so of accommodation and food, and tools -- you're looking at about US$3,000.

Good luck, but remember: If you want to give "Knuckles" Chiang a call, I charge a commission. It's called "business etiquette."
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