Cross-Border Disputes With Chinese Parties

Arbitration and the New York Convention

China acceded to the New York Convention in 1987 with the reciprocity and commercial reservations: its courts enforce awards made in other Contracting States arising from relationships considered commercial under Chinese law. Applications concerning foreign and foreign-related awards are subject to an internal reporting system — a court that proposes to refuse enforcement must refer the case to higher courts before it can do so. China’s revised Arbitration Law, in force since 1 March 2026, recognises the seat of arbitration in foreign-related disputes and sets out a statutory framework for enforcing foreign awards.

Interim measures

Under Chinese law, interim measures in support of an arbitration are granted by the courts. For Mainland-seated arbitrations, the arbitral commission forwards the application to the competent court. Since 1 October 2019, parties to arbitrations seated in Hong Kong and administered by qualifying institutions can also apply to the Mainland courts for the preservation of property, evidence and conduct — see HKIAC arbitration.

Foreign judgments in the Chinese courts

Chinese courts recognise foreign judgments under bilateral judicial-assistance treaties or on the basis of reciprocity. Guidance issued by the Supreme People’s Court in 2022 moved from requiring proof that the foreign country had already recognised a Chinese judgment to “legal reciprocity”: reciprocity is presumed where the foreign country’s law would allow a Chinese judgment to be recognised, and a Chinese court has since recognised an English commercial judgment on that basis. Since the amendments to the Civil Procedure Law that took effect on 1 January 2024, the grounds for refusal are set out in the statute: the foreign court’s lack of jurisdiction under Chinese rules; lack of proper notice or of a reasonable opportunity to be heard; fraud; an existing Chinese judgment, or a recognised third-country judgment, on the same dispute; and conflict with the basic principles of Chinese law or with China’s sovereignty, security or public interest. Applications are made to an intermediate people’s court, generally within two years.

Hong Kong and the Mainland

Hong Kong is a separate legal system, with its own courts and an arbitration law based on the UNCITRAL Model Law, and its own arrangements with the Mainland: for the mutual enforcement of arbitral awards (in effect since 2000 and supplemented in 2020), for interim measures in aid of arbitration (since 2019) and for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (since 29 January 2024). Assets held through Hong Kong companies can be frozen by the Hong Kong courts, through Hong Kong counsel.

Service, evidence and documents

China is a party to the HCCH Service and Evidence Conventions; service on a Mainland defendant generally goes through China’s Central Authority, which can take many months — a factor in planning any litigation against a Chinese party. Since November 2023, China has also applied the Apostille Convention, which simplifies the authentication of public documents for use there.