CHINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Peibing Qi, Na Gao and Shanshan Heng, Fangda Partners
which a court issued an investigation order upon application by an arbitral institution. • Enforcing arbitral awards – courts may enforce effective domestic arbitral awards and recognise and enforce valid international arbitral awards. 3.9 Court Intervention Absent an application by a party to an arbitration case, courts generally will not intervene in arbitration proceedings on their own initiative. Common circum- stances in which courts may intervene include the following. • Determining the validity of an arbitration agreement – a party may apply to the court to confirm the validity of an arbitration agreement prior to the first hearing of the arbitral tribunal. The court has the authority to find an arbitration agreement invalid. Common grounds for invalidity include: (a) the arbitration agreement is ambiguous and the parties are unable to reach a consensus; (b) the matters agreed to be arbitrated exceed the scope of arbitrable disputes as provided by law; (c) the party entering into the agreement lacks or has limited civil capacity; or (d) one party employed duress during the forma- tion of the agreement. • Setting aside an arbitral award – within three months from the date of receipt of the award, a party may apply to the Intermediate People’s Court at the place where the arbitral institution is located to set aside the award. The court has the authority to either set aside the arbitral award or remand the matter for re-arbitration. • Refusing (recognition and) enforcement of an (inter- national) arbitral award – a party may request the court to refuse (recognition and) enforcement of the (international) arbitral award on statutory grounds, and the court has the authority to issue a ruling refusing (recognition and) enforcement. 3.10 Relief Types of Relief Available in Arbitration • Monetary relief – claims for the payment of dam- ages, liquidated damages, contract price and other monetary sums.
• Specific performance – claims requiring the contin- ued performance of contractual obligations, such as delivery of goods or completion of registration formalities. • Declaratory relief – confirmation of rights or legal relationships, such as a declaration that a contract is valid or invalid. Interim Measures Issued by Arbitral Tribunals • Currently, Chinese legislation does not empower arbitral tribunals to grant interim measures. While the arbitration rules of leading Chinese institutions now permit tribunals to issue such measures, their enforcement ultimately remains contingent upon court recognition. • In October 2024, an arbitral tribunal of the Beijing Arbitration Commission (BAC), upon application by a party, issued a decision on interim measures, which was subsequently recognised and enforced by the Beijing Fourth Intermediate People’s Court through preservation measures, constituting the first case nationwide in which an interim measure decision by an arbitral tribunal obtained judicial enforcement. • Mediation by courts and arbitral tribunals in litiga- tion and arbitration proceedings – the Civil Pro- cedure Law, Arbitration Law and the arbitration rules of major arbitration institutions all contain explicit provisions regarding the mediation system conducted by courts and arbitral tribunals, as well as the legal effect of mediation awards issued by these adjudicatory bodies. • Independent mediation by commercial mediation organisations – the Commercial Mediation Regula- tions officially took effect on 1 May 2026, serving as domestic legislation to implement the Singapore Convention on Mediation. These regulations clearly stipulate the procedures for commercial media- tion activities conducted by commercial mediation organisations within China, as well as the validity and judicial recognition of final mediation agree- ments. Currently, commercial mediation organi- sations have been established in many regions 4. Other ADR Methods 4.1 ADR Procedures
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