Six Years At Sea And Counting

Well over six years of Chinese anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden have directly supported People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) modernization goals and provided invaluable experience operating in distant waters. Lessons learned have spawned PLAN innovations in doctrine, operations, and international coordination. Many of the insights gleaned during deployments are applicable to security objectives closer to home; some officers enjoy promotion to important positions after returning. Anti-piracy operations have been a springboard for China to expand considerably its maritime security operations, from evacuating its citizens from Libya and Yemen to escorting Syrian chemical weapons to their destruction and participating in the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. So great are the benefits to China's global maritime presence and enhanced image at home and abroad that when Gulf of Aden anti-piracy operations finally wind down, Beijing will have to develop new means to address its burgeoning overseas interests.

On 11 November 2001,the People’s Republic of China officially became a member of the World Trade Organisation. During the preceding two decades China emerged as a major trading and maritime nation, has adopted more than twenty maritime related laws and has ratified most of the important international maritime conventions. Maritime Law and Policy in China contains new translations of all the major maritime laws of the People’s Republic of China together with detailed explanations of the rationale behind the legislation. A comprehensive examination of the Maritime Code 1992 is included as is a new translation of the Maritime Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China 1999, which lays down the jurisdiction of the maritime courts in China and provides for matters such as arrest of ships, orders for security and maritime injunctions. China’s ratification of the international maritime conventions is also examined in detail. This title will be an indispensable reference work for maritime lawyers, marine insurers, P I Clubs, shipping companies and all trading companies conducting business with China.

Arbitration in China has been aligned with international norms since the enactment of the Arbitration Law in 1994. The purpose of this book is to assist practitioners by describing the law governing arbitration in China as it is currently applied to practice, both domestically and internationally, taking into account the regime's numerous features. Among the details affecting arbitration practice and procedure in China covered are the following: • arbitration agreement as a precondition for any arbitration proceedings; • finality of arbitral awards without any right of appeal; • procedure governing arbitral proceedings; • the extent of permissible judicial review; • arbitrations with a connection to Hong Kong, Macau, or Taiwan; • persistent involvement of local governments in arbitration acceptance and proceedings; • rules on the handling of cases with foreign elements; • guidelines provided in the Supreme People’s Court’s judicial interpretations; • fees; • grounds for objecting to jurisdiction; • mechanisms for multi-party arbitration; • interim injunctions; • formation of arbitral tribunals; • use of expert witnesses; • enforcement of arbitral awards; and • use of mediation. Although focusing predominantly on the practical effects of Arbitration Law provisions, the authors stress practice involving China’s two commissions specifically addressing international matters, the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) and the Beijing Arbitration Commission (BAC). Among the numerous local commissions functioning under the Arbitration Law, special attention is paid to those in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, which (along with CIETAC) accept the greatest number of cases with a foreign element. The book will be invaluable to corporate counsel and other practitioners dealing with Chinese companies. Scholars of comparative arbitration law will also find much here to interest them.