Authored by Arthur Dong (dongxiao@anjielaw.com) and Darren Mayberry (darren.mayberry@anjielaw.comat AnJie Law Firm

The post Enterprises in China’s Free Trade Zones Enter 2017 with New Options for Arbitration appeared first on Kluwer Arbitration Blog.

On December 30, 2016, the Supreme People’s Court (“SPC”) issued a set of new Opinions.  It covers an array of matters relating to legal measures to expedite the development of Free Trade Zones. (Opinions on Providing Judicial Protection for the Construction of Pilot Free Trade Zones, December 30, 2016). Among other matters, the SPC sought to open the Free Trade Zones  to further options regarding alternative dispute resolution. Remarks made in Article 9 have effectively designated as Foreign Per Se any Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprises which are registered in one of 11 current Free- Trade Zones. In three brief paragraphs, the SPC seems to have shifted the landscape for China-based arbitrations. The immediate practical significance of the Opinions may remain humble and limited. In time, the SPC’s Opinions may  permit increased deference and  jurisdictional purview to foreign tribunals. It also may serve as the  beginning of ad hoc arbitration in China.

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