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How can the judiciary effectively exercise its functions of supporting and supervising arbitration to help build Shanghai into a leading international center for commercial arbitration? This morning (July 8), the Shanghai High People's Court (SHPC) held a press conference to report on the judicial review of arbitration by courts in Shanghai from 2020 to 2024 and to release ten representative cases.
The press conference was attended by Cao Jie, Vice President of the Shanghai High People's Court; Jin Xiaofeng, Chief Judge of the Maritime and Admiralty Division of SHPC; and He Yun, Chief Judge of the Shanghai International Commercial Court. Zhang Haijuan, Director of the Law Publicity Department (News Center) and Spokesperson of the SHPC, chaired the press conference. This conference marks the 15th event in the “Promoting Justice and Making an Example—Further Advancing the Modernization of Shanghai Courts’ Work” series of press conferences.
It is reported that in the past five years, Shanghai courts have accepted a total of 2,616 cases involving judicial review of arbitration and 6,933 applications for arbitration-related preservation measures, with the overall number of cases showing an upward trend. Specifically, the number of arbitration judicial review cases increased from 453 in 2020 to 634 in 2024, a rate of growth significantly lower than that of arbitration cases overall. This indicates that arbitration in Shanghai enjoys a high level of quality assurance and is well accepted by business entities. The number of cases involving arbitration-related preservation measures rose from 834 in 2020 to 2,337 in 2024, reflecting the strong level of judicial support provided by courts in Shanghai for arbitration activities.
Over the past five years, among the arbitration judicial review cases accepted by courts in Shanghai, 1,448 involved applications to set aside arbitral awards, accounting for 55.35%, and 791 involved applications to confirm the validity of arbitration agreements, accounting for 30.24%. The total disputed amounts have varied significantly due to the influence of high-value individual cases, with the annual peak reaching CNY 3.67 billion and the trough at CNY 280 million. The outcomes of judicial review show a "two-high, two-low" pattern: a high rate of confirmation of arbitration agreement validity (reaching 93.5%), a high rate of recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards (reaching 97.92%), a low rate of arbitral award annulment (only 0.14%), and a low rate of refusal to enforce arbitral awards (only 4.92%). In 2024, two cases were selected by the Supreme People's Court as part of its top ten representative cases on judicial review of arbitration. Three cases involving the accurate application of the New York Convention were included in the Case Law on UNCITRAL Texts (CLOUT) system of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law.
The high-quality development of arbitration cannot be achieved without judicial support and empowerment. Cao Jie stated that in recent years, while handling arbitration judicial review cases in accordance with the law, courts in Shanghai have steadily advanced various initiatives to support the innovative and internationalized development of arbitration in Shanghai.
For example, courts in Shanghai have optimized the jurisdiction mechanism for arbitration judicial review cases by issuing revised regulations on the centralized jurisdiction of such cases, under which ordinary arbitration judicial review cases are uniformly handled by the Shanghai International Commercial Court. This has achieved centralized management and specialized adjudication. Innovative supportive mechanisms that enhance the quality and efficiency of arbitration, pioneering establishment of an online system for handling property preservation in arbitration. In 2023, Shanghai issued China's first pilot measures for issuing investigation orders to assist in evidence collection for arbitration, thereby promoting the resolution of disputes and conflicts. To empower a diversified commercial dispute resolution mechanism that integrates litigation and arbitration, the "Shanghai International Commercial One-Stop Dispute Resolution Platform" was launched. This platform enables functions such as case inquiries, document transmission, and online applications between courts and arbitration institutions, serving as a key model of Shanghai's distinctive "litigation-arbitration coordination" mechanism. Shanghai has also deepened the implementation of judicial assistance arrangements for Hong Kong and Macao arbitration. Pursuant to the "arrangements" concluded between the Supreme People's Court and the governments of the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, the enforcement of Hong Kong and Macao-rendered arbitral awards in the mainland have been effectively safeguarded.
In alignment with international practices and to ensure the implementation of the Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Advancing the Development of an International Commercial Arbitration Center regarding innovations in ad hoc arbitration, the Shanghai High People's Court issued, in June 2024, provisions on the centralized jurisdiction of judicial review cases involving "three specified" ad hoc arbitrations. Under these provisions, except for ad hoc arbitration cases arising from financial disputes, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Shanghai Financial Court, all other such cases are subject to centralized jurisdiction by the Shanghai Maritime Court, thereby ensuring procedural regularity and consistency in the application of law for new types of arbitration judicial cases.
At the press conference, Jin Xiaofeng provided an overview of the ten representative cases. Among the cases, Case 7, concluded by the Shanghai Maritime Court, involved an application filed by an international trading company and a freight forwarding company for confirmation of the validity of an arbitration agreement. The judgment clarified the rules for determining foreign-related elements in ad hoc arbitration and for the appointment of ad hoc arbitrators. This case is the first in China to confirm the validity of an ad hoc arbitration agreement, providing stable judicial expectations for the broader implementation of ad hoc arbitration.
Shanghai is currently accelerating its efforts to build itself into an international commercial arbitration center. Against this backdrop, how can centralized jurisdiction over arbitration judicial review cases be properly implemented, and how can such cases be adjudicated accurately and in accordance with the law? He Yun explained that from the very beginning of its establishment, the court formed a dedicated arbitration judicial review team to enhance professional adjudication and to intensify efforts in institutional reform.
For example, the court has deepened innovation in judicial assistance mechanisms. Efforts to strengthen support for arbitration-related preservation measures have been significantly intensified. In the first half of this year, 46 preservation applications were approved, with an approval rate of 100% and the total amount preserved exceeding CNY 3 billion. Active assistance has also been provided to arbitration institutions in evidence collection. In May of this year, for the first time, the court supported an arbitration institution's evidence collection request based on a tribunal’s interim measure by issuing an investigation order. This marked an effective alignment between judicial safeguards for arbitration and internationally accepted arbitration practices. The case was selected as one of the ten representative cases released at this press conference. At the same time, the court has focused on leveraging the advantages brought by digital reform. Since the beginning of this year, the electronic service coverage rate for newly accepted cases has reached 100%, and the rate of online hearings has reached 77.9%, contributing to a reduction in the average adjudication period for arbitration judicial review cases to 38 days.
The press conference was attended by Zhai Weiqing, Deputy to the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, Chen Gui, Member of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, as well as representatives from the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Justice, the Shanghai Arbitration Association, several arbitration institutions, and members of the media.
(Note: In 2023, the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress enacted the Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Advancing the Development of an International Commercial Arbitration Center, which explicitly provide that "in commercial and maritime matters involving foreign-related elements, parties may agree to conduct ad hoc arbitration in Shanghai under specified arbitration rules by specified arbitrators", referring to the "three specified" ad hoc arbitration mechanism.)
Comments from Representative Committee Members
Zhai Weiqing, Deputy to the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, General Manager of Shanghai Foreign Service Human Resources Consulting Co., Ltd., and Special Supervisor of the Shanghai High People's Court
Shanghai is one of the first cities in China to initiate the development of an international commercial arbitration center and is currently striving to build a globally oriented arbitration hub for the Asia-Pacific region. Over the past five years, on one hand, courts in Shanghai have strengthened the development of specialized adjudication teams and mechanisms. Guided by a clear judicial philosophy that is supportive of arbitration, the courts have adjudicated a number of representative cases with both domestic and international influence, fully demonstrating the judiciary's lawful oversight and strong support for the development of arbitration. On the other hand, the courts have remained closely aligned with arbitration institutions, actively participating in the drafting and implementation of the Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Advancing the Development of an International Commercial Arbitration Center. They have proactively responded to the practical needs of innovation in the arbitration system by introducing a series of supporting measures, ranging from jurisdictional arrangements to case-handling guidelines. In addition, they successfully concluded the country's first case confirming the validity of an ad hoc arbitration agreement, thereby providing stable judicial expectations for the implementation of innovative practices in ad hoc arbitration. It is hoped that the courts will further enhance their lawful oversight and support for arbitration and provide a sound environment for the internationalization and rule-of-law development of arbitration.
Chen Gui, Member of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Partner at AnJie Broad Law Firm (Shanghai), Chief Supervisor of the Shanghai Guangcai Program Promotion Association, and Special Supervisor of the SHPC
Courts in Shanghai have achieved notable results in improving and refining the one-stop mechanism for resolving foreign-related commercial disputes and in facilitating the integration between litigation and arbitration, which merits close attention. As highlighted in the briefing, several initiatives have played a significant and positive role in practice. These include the Foreign-Related Commercial One-Stop Dispute Resolution Studio established by the Shanghai Pudong New Area People's Court, the mediation model for maritime cases entrusted to arbitration institutions by the Shanghai Maritime Court, and the mechanism for connecting bankruptcy-related disputes with arbitration established by the Shanghai Third Intermediate People's Court (which also functions as the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court and the Shanghai Railway Transportation Intermediate Court). In particular, the "Shanghai International Commercial One-Stop Dispute Resolution Platform" developed by the Shanghai High People's Court enables parties to apply online to the court for arbitration-related preservation measures and investigation orders. This system not only facilitates data interconnectivity between the courts and arbitration institutions, but also provides parties and lawyers with convenient, round-the-clock access, effectively opening a fast track for "litigation-arbitration coordination". It is hoped that courts in Shanghai will continue to take the construction of digital courts as an opportunity to strengthen the empowerment brought by digital reform and help enhance the efficiency and credibility of arbitration.
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