Hainan Free Trade Port will conduct foreign-related arbitration services

Starting from April 1st, foreign arbitration institutions, after registering with the Hainan Provincial Department of Justice and filing with the Ministry of Justice, can establish business organizations in the Hainan Free Trade Port to conduct foreign-related arbitration services for civil and commercial disputes in international business, maritime, intellectual property, and investment fields.

This is due to the "Administrative Measures for Foreign Arbitration Institutions to Set up Business Organizations in the Hainan Free Trade Port" issued by the Hainan Provincial Department of Justice on March 9, 2023. These measures further standardize the establishment and operation of foreign arbitration institutions in the Hainan Free Trade Port, promoting the international development of the arbitration industry in Hainan Province and laying the institutional foundation for building the Hainan Free Trade Port International Commercial Arbitration Center.

To implement the pilot work requirements of the International Commercial Arbitration Center proposed by the Central Committee of the Party, Hainan Province is focusing on enhancing the ability to resolve international commercial disputes, promoting a rule-of-law and internationalized business environment, and striving to build Hainan Province into an International Commercial Arbitration Center serving the Hainan Free Trade Port and facing the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

Promoting a high level of openness to the outside world is inseparable from a market-oriented, rule-of-law, international, and convenient business environment. As the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port advances, international economic and trade disputes occur from time to time. The World Bank's business environment indicator system lists dispute resolution as a primary indicator. International commercial arbitration, with its convenient and efficient operation, has become the most trusted and relied-upon method of rights relief for international commercial entities and is the main way to resolve disputes in international trade and investment.

Today, diversified dispute resolution mechanisms centered on arbitration, mediation, and litigation have become the basic infrastructure of the business environment. Therefore, building the Hainan Free Trade Port International Commercial Arbitration Center is of great importance in creating a fair, transparent, and predictable international rule-of-law business environment in the Hainan Free Trade Port and attracting global business resources.

To this end, on January 19, 2023, the Hainan Provincial Committee and the Provincial Government Office issued the "Construction Plan for the Hainan Free Trade Port International Commercial Arbitration Center" (hereinafter referred to as the "Plan"). The "Plan" proposes that by the end of 2025, the pilot work for the construction of an International Commercial Arbitration Center serving the Hainan Free Trade Port and facing the Pacific and Indian Oceans will be basically completed. By the end of 2035, the Hainan Free Trade Port International Commercial Arbitration Center will be fully established, with its influence and credibility in international commercial arbitration ranking among the top internationally.

The "Plan" insists on goal orientation, problem orientation, highlights reform and innovation, and continuously improves the openness of the arbitration industry to the outside world. It proposes specific measures such as formulating Hainan Free Trade Port Commercial Arbitration Regulations and introducing policies to promote the development of the legal services industry. It strongly supports the specialized development of arbitration in the fields of intellectual property, seed industry, etc., explores the development of international investment arbitration and sports arbitration businesses, and strengthens arbitration promotion and publicity through platforms such as the Boao Forum for Asia.