Publish time: Thu May 12 16:26:23 CST 2016
On March 2 2016, the 8th In-house Counsel Forum entitled “Thoughts on Arbitration” (the “Forum”) was co-hosted by the Beijing Arbitration Commission / the Beijing International Arbitration Center (the “BAC”) and the Center on China Corporate Legal Affair Management at the conference hall of the BAC. The event attracted counsels from some 20 large enterprises such as Genertec, State Grid, COFCO, SPIC, CCCC, SINOMACH, ChemChina, CRCC, CCECC, China Gold, SANY, AnBang Insurance, Hanergy Holding Group, Beijing Huafu Engineering, as well as representatives of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Legal Aid Union, Beijing Security Association. The guest speaker of this event was Mr. Peter R. Day, Arbitrator of the BAC and AAA and the former Chief Counsel for Boeing Computer Services and Boeing Support Services, and the moderator was Mr. Zhang Libin, Partner of Broad & Bright and Arbitrator of the BAC.
The Forum
Mr. Zhang Libin
Mr. Lin Zhiwei, Secretary General of the BAC, delivered a welcome speech on behalf of the hosts, and extended warm thanks to Mr. Day for his arrival. He pointed out that the In-house Counsel Forum series is devoted to invite professionals like Mr. Peter R. Day and Mr. Zhang Libin who are experienced in international arbitration to share their expertise and experience. Meanwhile, Mr. Lin welcomed those experts to actively participate in the series Forum, so as to promote the professional communication and the development of arbitration practice.
Mr. Lin Zhiwei
Thereafter, Mr. Peter R. Day shared his precious experience of several decades with the audience from three perspectives based on his extensive practice in arbitration and those China related arbitration cases he has been engaged in.
Mr. Peter R. Day
From the perspective of in-house counsel and in combination with his personal experience at Boeing, Mr. Day made a presentation on how an in-house counsel should do in dealing with arbitral proceedings. He thought that in-house counsels play an increasingly important role in recent years, who are not only responsible for risk control, but also required to have better legal competence so as to provide better performance in handling arbitrations of their companies. Either in China or in the US, the key value of in-house counsels lies in minimizing the loss while maximizing the benefit of their companies, a must for a competent in-house counsel. In addition, Mr. Day made an in-depth analysis of pros and cons of various dispute resolution methods such as litigation, arbitration and mediation, and suggested in-house counsels to make smart choices in accordance with the specific circumstances of their companies and the disputes.
Next, Mr. Day shared with the audience how an arbitrator could effectively move things forward in arbitrations through the eyes of an arbitrator. He was of the opinion that a competent arbitrator should identify the issues in dispute in the first place, and secondly ensure that both parties have opportunities to comment on merits of the case, and lastly always remember the importance of “fairness and justice”.
At last, Mr. Day addressed on how the chairperson of an arbitral tribunal should handle and render the award, still from the perspective of an arbitrator. He pointed out that there were several things the chairperson should do after receiving the case files. Firstly, s/he should be fully prepared, have a clear mind and make a proper hearing scheme. Secondly, s/he should correctly identify the procedural and substantive issues in the arbitration case. Thirdly, s/he should have sharp judgment and quick decisiveness that can show the professionalism of a chairperson of the tribunal and raise credibility thereof. Fourthly, s/he should endeavor to promote effective cooperation between the parties during the proceedings. Mr. Day stressed that the chairperson should all the time seek the best way that can cut the costs of arbitration, improve the efficiency of hearings and resolve the dispute soundly and quickly.
Q&A session
Mr. Day’s presentation entitled “Thoughts on Arbitration” aroused interests of the audience, who raised questions to him and Mr. Zhang Libin such as the similarities and differences between Chinese and American arbitrations, examination of grounds of challenging arbitrators, the relationship between mediation and arbitration. The speaker and the moderator provided answers thereto applying their rich experience and solid knowledge, which made the Q&A session a successful end of the Forum in the warm applause of the audience.
The In-house Counsel Forum was a series of events on legal practice jointly organized by the BAC and the Center on China Corporate Legal Affair Management, aiming at the promotion of experience and connections sharing among in-house counsels and the improvement of their capability of dispute resolution design and dispute risks management, by way of research and colloquia on issues in corporate legal risk management practice. The forum has attracted extensive attention from the community of in-house counsels ever since the launch thereof in 2012. We welcome more colleagues within the legal community and anyone interested in diversified dispute resolution to continue to pay attention to, and participate in, the BAC’s seminars and colloquia.