Publish time: Thu Jul 12 10:35:00 CST 2018
On June 20 2018, the 2018 London Summit on Commercial Dispute Resolution in China (the “Summit”) was successfully hosted in London by the Beijing Arbitration Commission / the Beijing International Arbitration Center (the “BAC”), jointly with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (the “CIArb”), the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London (the “CCLS”), and the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London (the “IALS”).
The Summit
As a preferred seat of international commercial arbitration, London has been selected as one of the host cities of the BAC annual summits for six consecutive years. Over the past six years, the BAC constantly furthered its cooperation and exchange with the international arbitration community, and endeavored to provide qualified and efficient dispute resolution services to parties from various countries. Its development has been well recognized by the international arbitration community. When moderating the opening ceremony, Dr. Ismail Selim, Director of the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration, highlighted that the Guide to Regional Arbitration 2018 published by the Global Arbitration Review has once again listed the BAC as “worthy of attention”, and made positive remarks on its progresses.
At the beginning of the opening ceremony, Dr. Chen Fuyong, Deputy Secretary General of the BAC, delivered an opening speech. He stressed that it is the 40th anniversary of China’s launch of its economic reform. Since the implementation of the “open-up” policy, China has actively participated in the global economic development, whereby commercial arbitration experienced fast growth, and the BAC is just an example of the Chinese arbitration development. The BAC has been endeavored to strengthen the exchange and cooperation with legal practitioners from different countries and regions, and steered the development of trade and investment to safety while promoting diversified dispute resolution mechanism.
Dr. Chen Fuyong
Mr. James Bridgeman SC, President of the CIArb, Prof. Loukas Mistelis, Director of the CCLS, and Prof. Avrom Sherr of the IALS then delivered speeches on behalf of the three joint organizers of the event, respectively, and reiterated their support to and affirmation of the Summit.
Mr. James Bridgeman SC
Prof. Loukas Mistelis
Prof. Avrom Sherr
Following the opening ceremony, the Session themed “The Overview of Arbitration and TPF Practice in the PRC” convened under the hosting of Dr. Ismail Selim (Director of the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration). Dr. Wang Xuehua (Partner of Beijing Huanzhong & Partners) and Mr. Zhang Zhi (Founding Partner of V&T Law Firm) acted as the keynote speakers, and Mr. Steven P. Finizio (Partner of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale) the commentator. Dr. Wang specially introduced relevant judicial interpretations issued by the PRC Supreme People’s Court in 2017, and shared cases in this respect. Mr. Zhang introduced the TPF development and practice in China. In the panel discussion, the four speakers had a warm discussion about the Chinese practice of international arbitration and the regulation of TPF.
Dr. Wang Xuehua
Mr. Zhang Zhi
Panel Discussion on the Overview of Arbitration and TPF Practice in the PRC
Session II of the Summit was themed “The Overview of Commercial Mediation Practice in the PRC”. The keynote speaker Mr. Fei Ning (Partner of Hui Zhong Law Firm) presented an introduction of the development and innovation of commercial mediation in China to the audience, and had an in-depth discussion on Arb-Med with the moderator Mr. Peter Yuen (Partner of Fangda Partners (in association with Peter Yuen & Associates)) and the commentator Mr. Charles Debattista (Barrister of St Philip Stone Chambers).
Mr. Fei Ning
Panel Discussion on the Overview of Commercial Mediation Practice in the PRC
Session III was themed “The Implications of COC, Take-or-pay, Price Review and Other Customary Energy Contract Clauses under Chinese Contract Law”, which was moderated by Mr. Reza Mohtashami (Partner of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer). The keynote speaker Mr. Zhang Weihua (Vice president & General Counsel, United Energy Group Limited) unveiled the development and reform of energy law in China under the new situation, as well as the application of take-or-pay clauses in the Chinese judicial practice. Ms. Jane Davies Evans (Barrister of 3 Verulam Buildings), the commentator, compared the statistics of energy disputes registered with the BAC, the ICC and the LCIA, and introduced the application of take-or-pay clauses under the English law.
Mr. Zhang Weihua
Panel Discussion on the Implications of COC, Take-or-pay, Price Review and Other Customary Energy Contract Clauses under Chinese Contract Law
In the next session themed “Latest Development in Construction Law in the PRC”, the keynote speaker Dr. Zhou Xianfeng (Partner of JunHe LLP) laid emphasis on the new challenges confronting construction dispute resolution, and conducted a discussion on EPC cases and the latest development of the FIDIC clause with Mr. Adrian Hughes QC (Barrister of 39 Essex Chambers), the commentators Ms. Deborah Ruff (Partner of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman), and Mr. William Godwin (Barrister of 3 Hare Court Chambers).
Dr. Zhou Xianfeng
Panel discussion on Latest Development in Construction Law in the PRC
The last session was themed “The Overview of Private Investment and Finance Disputes in the PRC”, which was moderated by Dr. Jalal El Ahdab (Partner of Ginestie Magellan Paley Vincent). Dr. Tao Xiuming (Partner of JunZeJun Law Offices) and Mr. Bao Zhi (Partner of Baker McKenzie FenXun) served as the keynote speakers, while Mr. Robert Rhodes QC (Barrister of Outer Temple Chambers) and Mr. Sachin Trikha (Senior Associate of Clifford Chance LLP) served as the commentators. Dr. Tao shared his views on the implications of the changes of national macroeconomic policy and financial regulatory policies on the trial of financial cases, and Mr. Bao presented an introduction of the latest financial judicial practice in China and related sample cases from the perspective of investment types and the classification of investment disputes.
Dr. Tao Xiuming
Mr. Bao Zhi
Panel Discussion on the Overview of Private Investment and Finance Disputes in the PRC
Next, the Summit entered into its session of closing remarks. The Hon Sir William Blair, former Chief Justice of the Commercial Court of the High Court of England & Wales and Professor of Financial Law and Ethics, Queen Mary University of London, was invited to deliver the closing speech. He firstly expressed congratulations for the success of the Summit, and appreciated the fruitful content of the annual report and the fantastic discussion by the speakers. He was of the opinion that under the Belt and Road Initiative, commercial dispute resolution in China will embrace a further development. Litigation, arbitration and mediation as different dispute resolution means, could and should co-exist with each other in harmony. Sir Blair also stressed that an effectively-functioning arbitration system must be established on the ground of an effectively-functioning court system, this is because courts not only make sure the independence of arbitration, but also have to oversee arbitration to a certain extent, and thus the interaction between courts and arbitration is of special significance. To ensure an effective interaction between courts and arbitration, judicial authorities of the PRC and the UK have kept beneficial exchange and communication, working hard to build an arbitration-friendly judicial environment. At last, Sir Blair gave thanks to the BAC for its efforts in promoting international commercial dispute resolution as well as the global economic and trade development.
The Hon Sir William Blair
The Summit has so far come to a successful conclusion. The speakers took group photos and then continued their exchange and communication during the subsequent cocktail reception.
Group photo
Cocktail reception
During the past few years, both the international arbitration community and the Chinese arbitration community have experienced dramatic reforms and development. The discussion on topics such as TPF, the effort for equal opportunity of females in arbitration and the promotion of the transparency of investment arbitration have added vibrancy and impetus to the international arbitration development. The BAC, as a leading arbitration institution rooted in China with certain influence within the Asia and Pacific region, has always kept up with the trend of international arbitration development, made research on international arbitration theories and put theories into practice. It not only endeavored to provide qualified and efficient arbitration services, but also spared no effort to build platforms for exchange and integration between the Chinese arbitration and the international arbitration. The BAC would like to work closely with other domestic and international arbitration institutions to provide parties from various countries with diversified dispute resolution services and to provide reliable guarantees for international economic and trade development.
This Summit was sponsored by Jingtian & Gongcheng, and was assisted by the General Council of the Bar, the Asia International Arbitration Center (AIAC), the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (CRCICA), and the Russian Arbitration Association during the preparatory period, with joint media support from Wolters Kluwer, the “ChinaGoAbroad.com” (CGA), and the Global Arbitration Review (GAR).