Publish time: Fri Sep 28 17:26:43 CST 2018
On 4 July 2018, the cooperation signing ceremony and the colloquium on New Trends of Diversified Dispute Resolution jointly organized by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade / China Chamber of International Commerce Mediation Center (the “CCPIT Mediation Center”) and the Beijing Arbitration Commission / Beijing International Arbitration Center (the “BAC”) was successfully held. The BAC’s Secretary General Mr. Lin Zhiwei, Deputy Secretary General Dr. Chen Fuyong, Director of the BAC Business Development Division (International Case Division) Mr. Zhang Haoliang and Case Manager Mr. Yin Tong attended the event on behalf of the BAC, along with Mr. Li Jianning, Secretary of the CCPIT Commercial Law Service Center, and Ms. Wang Fang, Deputy Secretary General of the CCPIT Mediation Center, who acted as representatives of the CCPIT Mediation Center. This event attracted more than one hundred professionals from the CCPIT, commercial mediation organizations, colleges and dispute resolution profession.
The conference
Commercial Mediation has always played an important role in the construction and development of diversified dispute resolution mechanism. The BAC has paid close attention to the development and application of commercial mediation in diversified dispute resolution, and by establishing an independent mediation center, organizing trainings for mediators and holding domestic and international colloquia, it has contributed both theoretical achievement and practical experience as to how mediation could be better used for commercial dispute resolution. The CCPIT Mediation Center is the earliest and most representative professional mediation institution in China that focuses on assisting Chinese and foreign parties to settle commercial and maritime disputes, independently and impartially, by the means of mediation. In recent years, the Chinese legislators, judiciary and relevant arbitration and mediation institutions attached great importance to commercial mediation, and provided full support to commercial mediation in the aspects of policy, legislation and regulation. It is in this context that the BAC and the CCPIT Mediation Center enter into a strategic cooperation agreement, and will conduct more cooperation in theoretical research on commercial research and Med-Arb connection practice.
In his welcome speech, Mr. Lin Zhiwei expressed his expectation of the future cooperation. He pointed out that the BAC looks forward to providing more enterprises with expertized commercial dispute resolution services with a strong combination with the CCPIT Mediation Center. Commercial Mediation is a specialized means of commercial dispute resolution, and the mediators usually need to have theoretical basis and practical experience in psychology, praxeology, economics and law. The BAC expects to constantly improve its professional capability in commercial mediation through its cooperation with the CCPIT Mediation Center, and starting from this signing ceremony, the BAC would like to make further progress therewith. Mr. Li Jianning said that as a fast-developing arbitration institution with global influence, the BAC has its independent mediation center, and thus is capable of providing parties with commercial mediation service that is independent from arbitration. The in-depth cooperation between the CCPIT Mediation Center and the BAC will further enhance the competence and professionalism of both parties.
Mr. Lin Zhiwei
Mr. Li Jianning
Prior to the signing ceremony, the BAC and the CCPIT Mediation Center jointly held a colloquium on New Trends of Diversified Dispute Resolution. Acting as the moderator of Session I on Review of Hotspot Issues of Commercial Mediation, Dr. Chen Fuyong highlighted that the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (the “Mediation Convention”) will be opened for signing soon. As the New York Convention in the area of commercial mediation, the Mediation Convention has no concept of nationality of settlement agreement, and will be applicable upon the joint selection of the parties, which makes it possible that the Mediation Convention may have more extensive and profound influence than the New York Convention.
Dr. Chen Fuyong
Mr. Wen Xiantao, Director of Dept. of Treaty and Law of the Ministry of Commerce, Mr. Yang Xiaochuan, Partner of Jiahe Law Offices, and Mr. Fei Ning, Partner of Huizhong Law Firm, delivered their remarks during Session I on Review of Hotspot Issues of Commercial Mediation. By referring to the background of making the Mediation Convention, Mr. Wen Xiantao stressed that a quick enforcement system will make mediation more attractive and more frequently chosen, and thereby will further save judicial resources. Mr. Wen suggested that China builds its supporting mechanism in this respect and make regulation on mediator’s qualification, so as to better connect with the Mediation Convention. Mr. Yang Xiaochuan reviewed his own experience of participating the drafting of the Mediation Convention on behalf of the BAC, interpreted the scope of commercial mediation, the definition of “international” and the causes of non-enforcement under the convention, and shared the contribution of the BAC as an observer of the UNCITRAL Working Group II on Dispute Resolution to the Chinese version of the Mediation Convention. Mr. Fei Ning, as the author of the chapter on commercial mediation of the Annual Review on Commercial Dispute Resolution in China (2018), interpreted the different views about Arb-Med of Chinese and the Western parties as well as the ground of such difference based on his extensive arbitration practice. Mr. Fei believed that mediation in China has experienced quick development in the year of 2017, the attorneys’ participation in mediation and the establishment of online mediation platform will lay a solid foundation for the development of mediation as a means of commercial dispute resolution.
Mr. Wen Xiantao
Mr. Yang Xiaochuan
Mr. Fei Ning
Ms. Wang Fang moderated Session II on Connection between Mediation and Arbitration – Practice, Experience and Suggestion. Ms. Wang pointed out that following the signing of the cooperation agreement, the two partners will have more cooperation on Med-Arb connection. Based on the cooperation agreement, in mediation cases filed with the CCPIT Mediation Center, if the parties reach settlement agreement for part of their dispute, the CCPIT Mediation Center may help the parties to conclude an arbitration clause for the remaining part in dispute and appoint the BAC as the arbitration institution. In arbitration cases filed with the BAC, if the parties request for mediation service, the BAC may suggest the parties to select the CCPIT Mediation Center for mediation, and in case the mediation fails, they may still refer the dispute to the BAC for arbitration.
Ms. Wang Fang
Prof. Fan Yu from the Renmin University of China, Dr. Chen Jian, Secretary General of the China Academy of Arbitration Law, and Mr. Tang Xinbo, Partner of Beijing Kangda Law Firm, gave speeches during Session II on Connection between Mediation and Arbitration – Practice, Experience and Suggestion. Prof. Fan Yu referred to the practice of the BAC’s establishment of its independent mediation center and pointed out that it was an innovative approach for arbitrations institutions to set up independent mediation centers, which could fully make use of the arbitration institutions’ rich case resources, strong human resources as well as the professional mediators and arbitrators, reduced the inefficient competition between mediation institutions and arbitration institutions, met different requirements of commercial dispute resolution, and provide the parties with more options and conveniences. Dr. Chen Jian’s speech was themed Operability and Benefits of Med-Arb Combination. He introduced the advantages and values of med-arb combination from perspectives of the parties, the arbitral tribunal and the arbitration institutions. Mr. Tang Xinbo shared his viewpoints on med-arb combination based on his own experience and practical statistics.
Prof. Fan Yu
Dr. Chen Jian
Mr. Tang Xinbo
Next to the colloquium, Mr. Lin Zhiwei and Mr. Li Jianning signed the strategic cooperation agreement on behalf of the two institutions.
Signing ceremony
The BAC as a leading Chinese arbitration institution with global influence has been endeavored to promote the theoretical research and practical development of diversified dispute resolution mechanism, and provides diversified commercial dispute resolution services to the parties in accordance with the features of different disputes, so as to meet different commercial dispute resolution requirements and received extensive recognition of both domestic and foreign clients and colleagues. The cooperation agreement between the BAC and the CCPIT Mediation Center has strong practical significance to the exchange of resources and information sharing between the two partners, who will conduct more cooperation in various areas such as Med-Arb connection, theoretical research of commercial mediation, mediator training and marketing of commercial mediation, and will have joint efforts for the promotion of healthy and orderly development of diversified dispute resolution mechanism.