Spring Reception for International Arbitration Held by SCIA in San Francisco

The Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) held its Spring Reception for International Arbitration in San Francisco on March 13, 2024.

The Spring Reception drew a diverse crowd of over 60 attendees, including SCIA panel arbitrators in North America and professionals from the business community, leading international law firms, judiciary and universities.

Dr. Liu Xiaochun, President of SCIA, introduced in his welcome remarks the latest developments of international arbitration in China from the perspectives of SCIA’s international governance structure, international panel of arbitrators and international rules. SCIA’s arbitration rules consists of a general arbitration rules, a guideline for administration of arbitration under UNCITRAL arbitration rules, and a guideline for optional appellate arbitration procedure. Dr. Liu also mentioned SCIA’s endeavor in making rules arrangement for investment arbitration to be administered in China and in utilizing the advantage of having three jurisdictions including Hong Kong’s common law feature in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The HDR (Harmonious Dispute Resolution) mechanism, initiated by SCIA over the past 17 years, was sparked intense discussions at the Spring Reception.

Gary Benton, Chairman of the Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center (SVAMC), expressed interest to bolster collaboration with SCIA, facilitating exchanges between enterprises in US and China, especially those in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Chris Poole, President of the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services Inc. (JAMS) lauded the longstanding partnership between JAMS and SCIA and looked forward to further synergies.

Wu Peimin, Consul (Counselor Rank) of the Economic and Commercial Office of the Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in San Francisco, extended congratulations and emphasized the pivotal role of high-level international commercial arbitration in fostering stable economic and trade relations between China and the United States.

SCIA presented panel arbitrator certificates to those hailing from Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C and other cities across the United States.