Beijing Arbitration Commission

Publish time: Fri Oct 20 16:36:30 CST 2017

On October 14, 2017, the Beijing Arbitration Commission/Beijing International Arbitration Center(BAC/BIAC, hereafter BAC) , Chartered Institute of Arbitrators East Asia Branch (CIArb (EAB)) and Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA) successfully co-hosted the “2017 Hong Kong Summit on Commercial Dispute Resolution in China" at the Jardine House in Hong Kong. Around 100 professionals from Hong Kong, mainland China and Australia attended this event.

The Summit

Looking around the world, the global economy has been improving in cooperation, and the economic globalization keeps going in fluctuation. In the context of nowadays environment, it is undoubted that China has been playing an increasingly important role in the world. With continuous adoption of international cutting-edge practice, the Chinese commercial dispute resolution capacity has also been growing rapidly. Hong Kong as one of the global financial centers and the “Pearl of the Orient”, has always been a platform for exchange and integration of economy, society and culture between China and the West. It is exactly under these two backgrounds that the BAC has initiated its worldwide experience sharing since 2012 based on its Chinese arbitration practice accumulation, and so far has organized the Commercial Dispute Resolution in China: An Annual Review and Preview for five consecutive years. On the ground of such efforts, the BAC endeavors to show Chinese commercial arbitration environment and potentials to the outside world. In October 2016, the BAC had its roadshow in Hong Kong for the first time, and held the “Opportunities and Challenges under the Belt and Road Initiative: 2016 Hong Kong Summit on Financial and Investment Dispute Resolution in China”, which received great success and favorable reception. This year, in succession to its summits in Europe, the BAC organized a high-end dialogue between Chinese leading dispute resolution experts and prominent figures of international arbitration community from different cultural backgrounds by Victoria bay. This one-day event not only revealed the up to date dispute resolution practice in China, but also presented the world’s comments on and feedback to China’s development, which is a reliable opportunity for mutual understanding and further cooperation between Chinese and foreign legal circles.

Dr. Fuyong Chen	Ms. Teresa Cheng

Ms. Mary Thomson	Mr. Andrea Martignoni

As commented by Ms. Teresa Cheng, GBS, SC, JP, Vice Chairperson of the BAC, in her opening speech, “this Summit is not only another roadshow of the BAC in succession to those in London, Paris, Frankfurt, Vienna and Zurich, but for the second time the BAC holds such a grand event in Hong Kong. The BAC endeavors to and is capable to promote a better, cleaner, healthier and competitive arbitration market in China. As a matter of fact, in recent years, Chinese arbitration participants has indeed become proficient in using modern commercial arbitration skills to provide the parties with better services”. Thereafter, Ms. Mary Thomson, Chairman of CIArb (EAB), and Mr. Andrea Martignoni, Vice President of ACICA, expressed warm welcome to the audience in their respective opening speeches, and sincerely wished the event a success. Meanwhile, they said that the Belt and Road Initiative brought new opportunities to Chinese commercial dispute resolution, and they look forward to a win-win outcome between China and the world. Apart from that, Mr. Andrea Martignoni also mentioned that the BAC will be sole diamond sponsor of the 2018 ICCA Congress to be held in Australia next year.

Mr.Jingzhou Tao	Ms. Helena H.C. Chen

Ms. Louis Barrington	Ms. Kim Rooney

Ms. Caroline Kenny	Q&A

Session One: Evolution and Adaption – The Future of International Arbitration

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. Arbitration has made significant progress all over the world. Either the dealing with arbitration cases or the studies of arbitration has achieved great performance. Meanwhile, however, arbitration is facing unprecedented challenges. Session One of the Summit is thus themed “Evolution and Adaption – The Future of International Arbitration”. Ms. Helena H.C. Chen, Chief Rep. of Beijing Office and Partner of Pinsent Masons LLP, started her speech from China’s accession to the Convention on Choice of Court Agreements, and introduced that with a growing number of signatories of this convention, arbitration’s huge success for its international enforceability relying on the New York Convention is being weakened. Thus international arbitration should highlight its advantages in terms of efficiency and cost. For the same reason, Ms. Louis Barrington from the CIArb (EAB) provided her thoughts about hotspot issues such as emergency arbitrator, expedited procedure, summary award in arbitration, revealing the helpful exploration and attempt of international arbitration practitioners for the purpose of raising arbitration efficiency. Meanwhile, she also looked into the application of internet and AI in arbitration. Ms. Kim M. Rooney, Member of the Hong Kong Bar Association’s Council, presented an introduction of integration and differentiation of different legal systems in international arbitration, and raised her structural ideas about the dispute resolution system under the background of the Belt and Road Initiative. Ms. Caroline Kenny, QC, President of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (Australia), discussed the issue of third party funding, and revealed the significance of this scheme for easing the parties’ burden of cost in arbitration. From the comparison of the divergence of TPF in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong, she believed that the exploration of this scheme in these jurisdictions would make it one of the most important evaluating factors for parties’ choice of the seat of arbitration. This Session was moderated by Mr. Jingzhou Tao, Managing Partner in Charge of Business Development in Asia, Dechert LLP.

Mr. James Kwan	Dr. Libin Zhang

Mr. Weihua Zhang	Mr. Wilson Wei Huo

Mr. Andrea Martignoni	Q&A

Session Two: The OBOR and Energy Transactions: Risk Management and Dispute Resolution

Next, Session Two of the Summit was focused on “The OBOR and Energy Transactions: Risk Management and Dispute Resolution”. Moderated by Mr. James Kwan, Partner of Hogan Lovells International LLP, Dr. Libin Zhang, Partner of Broad & Bright Law Firm, and Mr. Weihua Zhang, Vice President & General Counsel of United Energy Group Limited, shared and discussed the news and trends of the whole energy market. Dr. Libin Zhang started with the Chinese market and the OBOR background, predicted the future development of Chinese energy industry from the perspectives of Chinese government’s regulation, typical cases and risk points in the industrial chain. Mr. Weihua Zhang shared his summary of different risks in various types of international energy transactions with a Nigerian case study, and provided coping strategies that in his opinion will be workable. Thereafter, the commentator, Mr. Wilson Wei Huo, Partner of Zhong Lun Law Firm, stressed on the diversified dispute resolution in energy transactions, and responded to the question how disputes arising from cross-border energy transactions under the OBOR background could be better resolved as mentioned by the speakers, and provided options of Chinese internationalized arbitration institutions and commercial legal services. Mr. Andrea Martignoni, Vice President of ACICA, provided pertinent comments on international practice and China’s special features with reference to the Australian energy market development.

Ms. May Tai	Dr. Xiuming Tao

Mr. Zhi Bao	Mr. Jiaxing Zhou

Mr. Yong Kai Wong	Mr. Lei Shi

Q&A

Session Three: Chinese Financial Investment Regulation and Practice – Impacts on the OBOR Financing Investment

Following the networking lunch, Session Three themed “Chinese Financial Investment Regulation and Practice – Impacts on the OBOR Financing Investment” was unveiled. Ms. May Tai, Managing Partner in charge of Greater China, Herbert Smith Freehills, moderated this session. Dr. Xiuming Tao, Partner of JunZeJun Law Offices, and Mr. Zhi Bao, Partner of FenXun Partners, jointly delivered a report on the impacts of Chinese government’s regulation changes in 2016 on dispute resolution in financing investment. They said that in asset management business with huge turnovers but limited effective regulation, it will be advisable to clarify the scope of such business, so as to determine the liabilities for violation of regulation requirements and asset manager’s responsibilities. In the area of investment, more types of commercial disputes are found with business innovations, where equity in the nature of debt has been a typical problem in the Chinese market, and thus a clear understanding of the logic behind the transaction arrangement will help meet the law of the market. In the panel discussion, Mr. Jiaxing Zhou, Managing Director and Head of Legal Department of CICC HK, Mr. Yong Kai Wong, Managing Director and General Counsel of CITIC Capital, and Mr. Lei Shi, Consultant of Clifford Chance, conducted in-depth discussion and view exchanges on the evolution of Hong Kong financing investment market and the changes of its regulation, as well as dispute resolution within this industry.

Mr. Sarah Grimmer	Mr. Zhonghua Zhu

Mr. Jun Cui	Mr. Patrick Zheng

Mr. Thomas Walsh	Q&A

Q&A

Session Four: The Opportunities and Risk in the OBOR Infrastructure Projects on the Perspective of the Development of Chinese PPP Practice

Session Four was focused on “The Opportunities and Risk in the OBOR Infrastructure Projects on the Perspective of the Development of Chinese PPP Practice” and was moderated by Ms. Sarah Grimmer, Secretary General of HKIAC. Mr. Zhonghua Zhu, Partner of City Development Law Firm (Beijing), and Mr. Jun Cui, Managing Director of Eminent Consulting Limited, made keynote speeches. Mr. Zhu thought that currently the Chinese legislation is still silent on PPP, regulation thereof were mostly issued by governmental authorities. From analyzing the main mode and features of PPP applied in China, he highlighted the main and frequently seen risks. Mr. Cui introduced Chinese companies’ application of FIDIC contracts in international construction projects, and specifically stressed the issues to be noticed during the execution and performance of FIDIC contracts and after the emergence of disputes. Mr. Patrick Zheng, Managing Partner of Clyde & Co LLP, made a further analysis of the risks of different types of contracts in different phases in PPP projects, and discussed the avoidance of relevant political risks. In addition, he mentioned other issues of Chinese PPP projects such as conflict of interest, arbitrability, whether Chinese courts can apply international treaties and so on. Mr. Thomas Walsh, Consultant of Clifford Chance LLP, made a response to the speakers’ speeches, viewing that in order to deal with risks that may arise from PPP projects, attention should be paid to the structure and mode of PPP projects, the way of financial solutions, and the choice of legal structure, without any blinding application.

Dr. Colin Ong, QC	Dr. Xuehua Wang

Mr. Stephan Guo	Mr. Khory McCormick

Q&A

Session Five: Invigorating Trade and Developing Dispute Resolution in China – A Comparative Study

Session Five was entitled “Invigorating Trade and Developing Dispute Resolution in China – A Comparative Study”, moderated by Dr. Colin Ong, QC, President of Arbitration Association Brunei Darussalam. Dr. Xuehua Wang, Partner of Beijing Huanzhong & Partners, presented an introduction to the audience on dispute resolution in international trade in the context of OBOR. He stressed that the continuous progress of the Belt and Road Initiative is bound to have more disputes, and arbitration is the best choice for settling international trade disputes under the Belt and Road Initiative thanks to its unique impartiality and enforceability worldwide. Mr. Stephan Guo, Director of CACLO, shared with the audience the new situation of Chinese companies in international trade from the perspective of an in-house counsel. It was his opinion that in the new international trade system and under the background of “Go Abroad” strategy, Chinese companies need to take precautions against new risks from overseas compliance requirements, local employment law, national security and antitrust law. At last, Mr. Khory McCormick, Vice President of ACICA, gave his comments with a view to the huge prospect and opportunity of the Belt and Road Initiative. He believed that taking into account factors such as judicial transparency and arbitration’s enforceability, arbitration should undoubtedly be the first chosen means of dispute resolution for OBOR international trade.

Mr. David Fong	Mr. Joao Ribeiro

Mr. Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung, GBM, SC, JP

At the end of the Summit, Mr. David Fong, Vice Chairman of CIArb (EAB), moderated the closing ceremony. Mr. Joao Ribeiro, Head of UNCITRAL Regional Centre for Asia and the Pacific, highly praised the successful holding of this event, and then introduced the major responsibilities of UNCITRAL and the functions of the UNCITRAL Model Law. Apart from that, he shared the latest trends of UNCITRAL’s legislation on e-commerce. At last, Mr. Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung, GBM, SC, JP, Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong, delivered thanks and compliments to the holding of this Summit on behalf of the Hong Kong SAR Government. He said that under the OBOR background, the Hong Kong SAR Government will continue to support the development of dispute resolution and especially international arbitration in Hong Kong as always. He believed that the independent judiciary of Hong Kong is bound to provide fine security, regulation, judicial and political environments to the execution of the Belt and Road Initiative. In warm applauses, the Summit has come to its end. In the following cocktail reception, the speakers and audience had a further exchange and discussion, where the insightful views and thoughts brought the event to a climax.

Cocktail reception

The rains in October keeps moistening the land, and maintaining the prosperity of Hong Kong. The fusion of Chinese and western wisdoms, and the exchange of different views of insights, reflected the strength and confidence China has harvested. From the windows of the conference hall, glimmers of the numerous skyscrapers are clearly reflected in the Victoria bay, bright and dazzling. In this best time, the BAC will, as led by its management, continue to raise its popularity and influence worldwide. The BAC will continue to attract leading international dispute resolution practitioners with first class colloquia and events, so as to substantively improve the image of Chinese commercial and legal environments, and thereby to provide better legal services and more dispute resolution options to Chinese and foreign entities in their international business and trade.

Group photo

Special thanks are due to Clifford Chance LLP, Zhong Lun Law Firm, Clyde & Co LLP, Pinsent Masons LLP and W. K. To & Co. for their sponsorship, and Hong Kong Bar Association, HKIAC, Hogan Lovells, The Law Society of Hong Kong, CACLO and LEXPR for their support, as well as LexisNexis, GAR and ChinaGoAbroad for their media support, to this Summit.