Internationalization of Governance Structure

In November 2012, the Shenzhen took the lead to adopt the Regulations on Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (For Trial Implementation) (Municipal Government Decree No. 245), the first dedicated regulations in China for a specific arbitration institution. In accordance with the legislation, the SCIA pioneered in governance structure of international arbitration institutions by establishing a corporate governance structure of statutory body centered around an international and professional council.

On 26 August 2020, the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, the Standing Committee of the 6th Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress approved the Ordinance on the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (the Ordinance) at its 44th meeting. This was the first local legislation in China specifically designed to regulate an arbitration institution, which helps strengthen the SCIA's institutional governance structure. The Ordinance will further improve the corporate governance structure of statutory body of the SCIA, further legalize the reform achievements of international arbitration in Shenzhen in the form of regulations of Special Economic Zones. Moreover, it will consolidate the independence and credibility of international arbitration in Shenzhen and enhance domestic and foreign parties' confidence in Shenzhen's rule of law and China's arbitration.

According to the Ordinance, the SCIA shall has a Council with 11 to 15 members to serve as its decision-making body. All Council Members shall be prominent figures from legal and business community or other relevant fields, no less than one-third of which shall come from Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and foreign countries. Currently, the 3rd SCIA Council consists of 15 members, among them 9 are from overseas jurisdictions including Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR.

Internationalized Panel of Arbitrators

In 1984, the SCIA took the lead to be the first arbitration institution in Chinese mainland to recruit arbitrators from overseas. Notably, 8 of the 15 arbitrators forming its first panel were from Hong Kong.

In 2016, the SCIA Council provided training in Qianhai for its arbitrators from Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR, and issued them letters of appointment. The Ordinance requires no less than one-third of the SCIA's panel of arbitrators shall be from overseas.

In 2019, the SCIA Council issued letters of appointment in Hong Kong SAR to arbitrators from Belt and Road countries to enhance collaboration with Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and beyond.

Currently, the SCIA Panel of Arbitrators enlists a total of 2,078 arbitrators from 129 countries and regions all over the world. Among them, 725 arbitrators that counts 34.89% of the total are from foreign jurisdictions.

Internationalization of Caseload Structure

In 2015, the SCIA handled the then-largest arbitration case filed in China, resolving an RMB 13.4 billion investment dispute involving three parties from China and the U.S.

In 2023, the SCIA accepted a foreign-related arbitration case in which the amount in dispute exceeded RMB 25 billion, which has been the largest arbitration case in China to date.

Total Amount in Dispute and Caseload (2020–2023)

Internationalization of Arbitral Award Enforcement

In 2018, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) chose Shenzhen as the place to start its global commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the New York Convention, which now has reached 172 contracting countries. Ms. Anna Joubin-Bret, Secretary of the UNCITRAL, noted that Shenzhen and Hong Kong SAR play a crucial role in the global recognition of Chinese arbitral awards.

The SCIA is a pioneer in the overseas enforcement of Chinese arbitral awards. In 1988, two years after China signed the New York Convention, the SCIA rendered an award on a case between a Guangdong company and a Hong Kong company. The award was enforced by the Hong Kong High Court in June 1989.

This marked the first time that a Hong Kong court enforced an arbitral award under the New York Convention, and the first time that a Chinese arbitral award was recognized and enforced overseas. Since then, China's arbitral awards have crossed the borderline and have been globally recognized and enforced. Till now, the SCIA's arbitral awards have generally been recognized and enforced both at home and abroad.

Since Hong Kong SAR's return to China, the SCIA has been the leading mainland arbitration institution in terms of enforcement of arbitral awards in Hong Kong SAR under the Arrangement Concerning Mutual Enforcement of Arbitral Awards between the Mainland and the Hong Kong SAR.
                                                                                                                      

Internationalization of Rules Structure

In 2016, the SCIA set another precedent in China with the SCIA Guidelines for the Administration of Arbitration under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules (the Guidelines), achieving three breakthroughs. Firstly, it creatively transposed and indigenized the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules to Chinese market through special procedures. Secondly, it provided Hong Kong SAR as the default place of arbitration. Thirdly, the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules and the Guidelines were established as the governing rules for resolving international investment disputes between foreign investors and host state, which makes SCIA the first arbitration institution in China to accept investor-state dispute.

In 2019, the SCIA updated its Arbitration Rules to better reflect the latest situation, international practices, and market needs.

Notably, the SCIA Guidelines for the Optional Appellate Arbitration Procedure was formulated. It took the lead in creating an optional appellate arbitration mechanism within the existing legal framework of China, which constitutes a helpful complement to the regime of finality of single-instance arbitration in China.

In December 2013, led by the SCIA, 15 major commercial arbitration and mediation institutions in the GBA co-established the Guangdong, Hong Kong & Macao Arbitration & Mediation Alliance (the Alliance, formerly known as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Commercial Mediation Alliance). The Alliance aims to promote the alignment and connection of rules and mechanisms in the GBA as well as a law-based business environment in the context of "One Country, Two Systems, and Three Jurisdictions".

In 2019, the Guangdong, Hong Kong & Macao Arbitration & Mediation Alliance Dispute Resolution Rules was released in Shenzhen. This was the first set of rules on cross-border dispute resolution issued in Shenzhen since the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and is designed to promote the mutual recognition, coexistence, alignment, and integration of the rules of the GBA.

In 2021, the Alliance expanded to 18 member institutions and released the Guangdong, Hong Kong & Macao Arbitration & Mediation Alliance Joint Panel of Mediators, which aggregates mediation experts from the GBA to collaborate for more effective and efficient cross-border dispute resolution.

Internationalization of Mechanism Connection

[SCIA + ICSID] In 2018, the SCIA inked a cooperation agreement with the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the World Bank in Washington, D.C. to strengthen exchange and collaboration.

[SCIA + America] In 2017, the SCIA North America Hearing Center was established in Los Angeles, making it China's first overseas hearing center for international arbitration.

[SCIA + UNCITRAL] In 2017, the SCIA began to collaborate with UNCITRAL. In 2022, the SCIA served as an official observer organization in UNCITRAL's Working Group II (Dispute Settlement) and Working Group IV (Electronic Commerce), and served as a temporary observer in Working Group III (Investor-State Dispute Settlement Reform, ISDS), contributing to international rules and presenting China's perspectives.

[SCIA + Europe] In 2016, the SCIA, the Association Suisse de l'Arbitrage (ASA) and the Swiss Chambers' Arbitration Institution (SCAI) collaborated with each other to jointly facilitate China-Europe dispute resolution.

[SCIA + Africa] In 2017, the China-Africa Joint Arbitration Center (Shenzhen) (CAJAC Shenzhen) was established, marking a new chapter in comprehensive China-Africa cooperation in arbitration.

[SCIA + Asia] In 2018, the collaboration between the SCIA and the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) became a key component of the Guangdong-Singapore cooperation framework. In 2019, the SCIA signed a Closer Cooperation Agreement with the HKIAC.