Tan Yifan

cicitan2011@gmail.com

A MEDIATION center has been set up at Qianhai Cooperation Zone People’s Court with an aim of providing convenient and effective services to those who are in need.

The Belt and Road International Commercial Court-Connected and Mediation Center of Qianhai, which is mainly responsible for diversified settlement of international commercial disputes and related work, cooperates with various institutes, including Shenzhen International Arbitration Court, Shenzhen Lawyers Association, Belt and Road Legal Service Federation in Qianhai and CCPIT-HKMC Joint Mediation Center.

The center is designed to give full play to mediators and will improve the neutral evaluation mechanism for foreign-related disputes.

According to the introduction, the center will invite guest mediators from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, as well as foreign countries, and establish a roster comprising them and mediation organizations. Mediators and mediation institutions will be entrusted and instructed to provide services before and after litigation. Related training will also be provided for the mediators.

Wen Changzhi, president of the Qianhai people’s court, said that with the increase in commercial cases being filed at the court, the court feels it is urgent to provide alternative options so related entities can have their cases settled in a shorter time.

“In 2015, we only dealt with around 1,000 cases a year. But in 2017, the number of filed cases increased to over 11,000. Sometimes, it takes more than two years in court to close one case. But with the help of mediators, the parties can find a satisfactory solution within several days. In fact, there are many ways to deal with one dispute,” said Wen.

Wen said the court had already set up a mediation center. So far, it has dealt with 500 commercial disputes.

To better serve the commercial entities in Qianhai and the greater bay area, the court will invite mediators and lawyers from over 100 countries to join the center, offering help through both online and face-to-face services.

“We will have the first batch of around 40 mediators from various countries and regions. They will provide various language services,” said Wen.

An online mediation platform will also open soon, allowing people to deal with disputes on their screens, according to the court.