Abstract
The necessity of analysing concretely and not superficially the modernization of the Chinese Arbitration Law (CAL) arises from the increased volume of arbitration disputes Chinese and foreign companies are interdependently involved in, which corroborates the relevance and effectiveness of this topical study, in particular for the development of business and commercial relationships with China. The first section of the paper introduces the implications of the current Chinese economic environment on international arbitration disputes, followed by a brief overview of the structure of the CAL and an examination of its two more relevant and controversial articles. A statistical analysis of the trends of the arbitration cases accepted and concluded by the Chinese arbitration commissions is provided. Section 3 describes several operative proposals for upgrading the CAL. They are the relaxation and more extensive flexibility of the validity of the arbitration agreement's clause, the introduction of a public list of qualified arbitrators at a national level, the increase in the number of foreign arbitrators exercising in China as well as Chinese arbitrators exercising abroad in international arbitration institutions and the analysis of the benefits and drawbacks of introducing the ad hoc arbitration in the CAL. Specifically its absence represents a consistent competitive disadvantage for the Chinese arbitration system and a serious obstacle to the harmonization and integration process of Chinese arbitration norms inside the international arbitration system in comparison with other foreign legislations. In the conclusion, several proposals to resolve (and/or reduce) general intrinsic problems of the Chinese arbitration system are recommended through the formalization and inclusion in the CAL of some virtuous and beneficial practices already adopted by the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission.