Wang Hongsong, Secretary-General of Beijing Arbitration Commission
In 1998 the Beijing Arbitration Commission (the BAC) made remarkable progresses in these aspects: the number of accepted case went up greatly; the membership change was accomplished as scheduled; the publicizing gained good result; and the training for arbitrators and theoretical research and discussion was carried out smoothly.
1. Case accepting and handling
The BAC handled a total of 233 cases in 1998, an increase of 65 and 38.7 percent compared with that in 1997. Of these cases, the number of the purchase-sale contractual disputes amounted to 142 accounting for 61 percent of the total, the construction project contractual disputes 42, 18 percent, real estate development, house buy and sale and house lease contractual disputes 32, 13.7 percent, advertisement deputy contractual disputes 5, 2.1 percent, technological contractual disputes 3, 3.1percent and other disputes 9, 3.83 percent. In all the cases, the number of the cases in which the parties definitely expressed the statement written in the arbitration agreement that the cases should be handled by the BAC rose to 200, 85.8 percent of the total and going up by 52 percent than 33 percent in 1997. From the aspect of the parties, the number of the cases in which register places (or dwelling place) of the two parties both located in Beijing is 123, taking up 52.7 percent; the number of the cases in which one party located in Beijing and the other did not is 81, 34.8 percent and that of the cases in which both parties did not located in Beijing 29, 12.4 percent.
The number of cases winded up by the BAC reaches 166 accounting for 71.2 percent of the total. The average time span for each case from the Arbitral Tribunal constituting to case winding-up is 83 days, 6 days more than that in 1997.
Up to January 27, 1999 the BAC has handled 580 cases of which 7 in 1995, 149 in 1996 and 168 in 1997, 233 in 1998 and 23 by the end of the first month this year. Among all the cases, the amount of the purchase-sale contractual disputes is 319, 55 percent of the total, the construction project contractual disputes 93, 20.6 percent, house buy and sale, house lease and real estate development contractual disputes 103, 17.75 percent, pooling and investment contractual disputes 20, 3.4 percent, technological contractual disputes 15, 2.5 percent, advertisement deputy contractual disputes 7, 1.2 percent and other type disputes 10, 1.7 percent. According to the statistical data provided by the second intermediate Peoples Court in Beijing, up to January 27 this year, the BAC has winded up 474 cases and there are 30 cases in which the parties applied to the Peoples Court for setting aside the arbitration awards. Of the thirty cases, there are 24 motions denied, 1 case determined to re-arbitrate and 2 arbitral awards determined to revoke by the Peoples Court. Based on the primary statistics, the number of cases in which parties applied to the Peoples Court for no-execution of the arbitration award is 10 or so and the Peoples Court ruled 2 awards against execution. There are 4 arbitral awards ruled to set aside or against execution accounting for 0.8 percent of the total number of cases winded up by the BAC.
So it can be concluded based on the above facts that the case-accepting number, case-ending number, case-handling efficiency and service quality of the BAC are satisfying as a whole.
2. Membership change at the expiration of office terms
In accordance with the documents of the State Council and the regulations of the BAC, the BAC was engaged in membership change from the March last year. Over the 5 months preparation, the Municipal government passed the decisions in the seventh executive meeting on October 27, 1998 that Jiang Pin (professor of China University of Political and Science and Law, famous expert in Civil and Commercial Law, the Chairman for the first BAC) held the post of the Chairman for the second BAC, Zhou Jidong (deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Office of Beijing Municipal Government, deputy executive Chairman for the first BAC) assumed the deputy executive Chairman, Wang Baoshu (professor of the Tshinghua University, expert in Civil and Commercial Law, deputy executive Chairman for the first BAC), Cui Shuqiang (deputy director of Beijing Administration of Industrial Commerce) and Wu Jie (deputy director of Beijing Chamber of Commerce) the deputy Chairman; Wang Hongsong (commissioner and plural Secretary-General for the first BAC) Commissioner and plural Secretary-General, Wang Liming (professor of Renmin University, expert in Civil Law, commissioner of Commission of Financial and Economical Affairs of the NPC, commissioner for the first BAC), Tian Xiling (senior economist, vice director of Beijing Sub-Council of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, commissioner for the first BAC), Li Dayuan (chief judge of the economical division for Beijing Supreme Peoples Court, commissioner for the first BAC), Zheng Chengsi (researcher, expert in Intellectual Property Law, commissioner of Commission of Legislative Affairs of the NPC), Wu Zhipan (professor of Peking University, expert in International Trade Law), Jia Wuguang (vice director of Bureau of Justice of Beijing) and Yu Cisheng (senior engineer, commissioner of Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission) assumed the office of commissioner. On September 5, the first meeting of the Second BAC was held and presided by the Jiang Ping, the Chairman of the present BAC. It also passed amended editions of the Regulations of the Beijing Arbitration Commission and Ethical Standards for Arbitrators of the Beijing Arbitration Commission, and listed the first batch of arbitrators newly recruited.
The Second BAC recruits 207 arbitrators according to the first list, and among them, 156 persons are also engaged in the previous BAC accounting for 55.3 percent of the number in previous BAC. Of 207 arbitrators, there are 26 persons possessing doctors degree, 12.6 percent of the total, 63 persons holding the masters degree, 30.4 percent and 77 with bachelors degree, 37.2 percent. The above persons take up the 80.2 percent of all the arbitrators. In addition, there are 13 persons graduating from junior colleges and 28 with other education background. In the aspect of the arbitrators occupation, there are 59 persons acting as lawyer and 48 experts and scholars engaged in law teaching and research, 53 experts in economic and trade, 38 leaders in legislation and law execution for administrative units and 9 retired judgers. So the structure and level of the professional knowledge and occupational distribution of the arbitrators changed greatly which provides profound basis for the BAC to further implement impartial, uncorrupted and high efficient arbitration and achieve the aim of setting up first class arbitration institute.
3. The publicizing of the Arbitration Law
110 articles from the BAC were delivered in newspapers and magazines, and programs were televised and broadcasted 6 times through the broadcast station and television station in 1998 (since its establishment, more than 300 articles has been delivered in newspapers and magazines and programs televised and broadcasted more than 30 times through the broadcasting station and television station); The BAC has published 6 issues of Beijing Arbitration Newsletters (Since its establishment, the BAC has published 20 issues). The contents involved in the BAC website were redesigned to improve readability and the click has reached 2900. In addition, the BAC held kinds of courses about the Arbitration Law with more than 1500 participants. Some participants were engaged in contractual management for real estate development companies, construction companies, part of military enterprises and financial units and others are leaders from the municipal government and some of municipal commissions, offices and bureaus. Wang Hongsong, the Secretary-General of the BAC, have lectured the Arbitration Law twice at the mayors office meetings, and more than 100 persons in charge of municipal government and principals from parts of commissions, offices and bureaus of municipal government participated in the lectures, which has gained highly recognition. After the membership change, China Legal System News and Beijing Daily also published the list of commissioners of the second BAC, the Arbitration Rules of the Beijing Arbitration Commission and the Ethical Standards for Arbitrators of the Beijing Arbitration Commission respectively in three printing plates and in this way good reputation and fine effect are obtained. Moreover, on the occasion that the Arbitration Law was enacted for three years, the BAC held the symposium in Peoples Hall to memorize the third anniversary of the Arbitration Law, which was reported by more than 10 medium units such as the CCTV, BTV etc., and the leaders from Commission of Legislative Affairs of the NPC Standing Committee, Supreme Peoples Court and Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council attended the symposium and delivered important speeches.
4. The theoretical research and academic exchanges involved in the Arbitration Law and the training of the arbitrators
In the middle of last October, the BAC organized a meeting discussing the applicable problems of relevant laws in the arbitration and part of the arbitrators and leaders from the Court participated in this meeting. In last November the BAC, in company with the Capital Electron Information Development Corp., also organized experts in computer and arbitrators to together probe into the feasibility and practical problems about E-commerce dispute. The BAC also strengthened the academic exchanges with Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas arbitration institutes last year. In addition, the BAC welcomed the delegation from Hong Kong lead by Lin Jun, the academic Chairman of the Arbitration Office of the Hong Kong, and held symposium in the middle of last April. In the symposium, Zhou Jidong, the deputy Chairman, Wang Baoshu, the deputy Chairman and Wang Hongsong, the Secretary-General respectively introduced our mainland arbitration system and the BAC to the delegation members. The delegation members showed great interest in the management and development of the BAC and expressed the wish to reinforce the work exchange and cooperation after this visitation. In the middle of last June some students and professors from legislative college of U.S., U.K., France and Germany invited the BAC and carried out academic exchange too. After the recruitment of the new arbitrators, the BAC have held two training courses for these arbitrators in which the Xi Xiaoming, the deputy Chief Judge of the Economical Division of the Supreme Peoples Court, introduced the Guarantee Law and the Yao Zhuang, a professor and senior arbitrator, put up lectures about How to be the Chief Arbitrator. There are 140 arbitrators in all participating in the trainings.