BAC chief sets direction for future strategy

Upon its foundation on 28 September 1995, the Beijing Arbitration Commission (BAC) established its goal of development to become an impartial, independent and efficient arbitration institution with a high standard of specialisation and internationalisation – an arbitration institution striving for excellence and continuously committed to innovation, with modern administration and high-level development.

In the past 18 years, BAC has developed into a strong and eminent arbitration institution. Up to 20 August 2013, we had accepted 21,352 cases with the disputed amount exceeding RMB100.5 billion (US$16.3 billion), among which 520 are international commercial cases, with parties from more than 20 countries and regions. BAC has committed to building its brand and credibility on a long-term basis, and we have won a reputation at home and abroad, with widespread identification and trust in business circles and among lawyers.

Last year, BAC accepted 1,473 cases, among which cases involving a party or both parties from places other than Beijing accounted for 45.2%. A favourable brand, excellent arbitrators, unique location in an international city, and evolving market all endow BAC with unprecedented development opportunities. To seize these opportunities, the commission has increased input in three aspects:

I. Providing diversified dispute resolution services. Diversified dispute resolution approaches can avoid the deficiencies and limitations of a single approach. The parties can make use of two or more ways to resolve disputes, completely settling problems that cannot be resolved by a single approach. In 2008, BAC implemented its commercial mediation rules, name an independent panel of mediators and invited senior lecturers from the US, Hong Kong and Taiwan to deliver professional mediation training courses. The mediation rules are basically the same as international commercial mediation practice. For example: the procedures are highly flexible; recommendation systems are used for mediators; and the remuneration of mediators is calculated separately from administrative fees. Mediation connects with arbitration, and the parties can convert a mediation agreement to an enforceable arbitration award through summary arbitral procedures, which provide a new dispute resolution approach for foreign enterprises unwilling to engage in a lawsuit or an arbitration in China.

Up to now, BAC has accepted 14 mediation cases, and in six of these mediation agreements were reached or partly reached. The parties to two international commercial cases have chosen the approach of joint mediation co-held by a Chinese arbitrator and a foreign/overseas mediator, which worked well. In 2009, BAC formulated and implemented its Construction Dispute Review Rules and established a panel of dispute reviewers.

The author, Wang Hongsong, is Vice Chairperson of the Beijing Arbitration Commission