1. Scope of Application
Foreign-related civil and commericial cases refer to those cases involving foreign elements. Under any of the following circumstances, the tribunal may determine a case as a foreign-related civil and commercial case:
(1) one party or both parties are foreigners, stateless persons, foreign enterprises or oganizations;
(2) the habitual residence of one party or both parties is located outside the territory of the People's Republic of China;
(3) the subject matter is located beyond the territory of the People's Republic of China;
(4) the legal facts that generate, change or terminate civil relations have taken place outside the territory of the People's Republic of China;
(5) any other circumstance under which a case may be determined as a foreign-related civil case.
2. Centralized Jurisdiction
Chengdu International Commercial Tribunal exercises centralized jurisdiction over certain cases of first instance that fall within jurisdiction of intermediate courts within Sichuan Province, with the exception of cases involving family and marriage disputes, cases involving disputes over inheritance, cases involving labor disputes, cases involving personnel disputes, cases involving maritime and admiralty affairs, cases involving environmental torts and Public Interest Environmental Litigations, cases involving border trade disputes in provinces bordering foreign countries, as well as cases involving real estate disputes with foreign elements and IP disputes with foreign elements.
(1) Civil and commercial cases in which one or both parties are foreigners, stateless persons, foreign enterprises or organizations, or the habitual residence of one or both parties is located outside of the territory of the People’s Republic of China;
(2) Civil and commercial cases in which the legal facts that generate, change or terminate civil relations have taken place outside the territory of the People’s Republic of China, or in which the subject matter of the case is located beyond the territory of the People’s Republic of China;
(3) Civil and commercial cases involving foreign-invested enterprises, including without limitation the formation, capitalization, shareholder status confirmation, profit distribution, mergers, split-ups and dissolution of such enterprises;
(4) Civil and commercial cases in which one party is a wholly foreign owned enterprise;
(5) Cases involving Letters of Credit and Letters of Guarantee, including applications to preserve property by suspending payment under Letters of Credit and Letters of Guarantee;
(6) Cases involving judicial assistance in cross-border bankruptcy cases;
(7) Civil and commercial cases involving judicial assistance;
(8) Judicial review cases and arbitration review cases in which the parties apply for confirmation of the validity of the arbitration agreement, or in which the parties apply to set aside arbitration awards made by Chinese arbitration institutions, or cases in which the parties apply for recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards made by foreign arbitration institutions.
3. Litigation Subject
(1) A foreign national that participates in an action shall submit to the people's court his or her passport and other certificates that are used to prove his or her identity.
(2) A foreign enterprise or organization that participates in an action shall submit to the people's court its identity certification documents which must be notarized by a notarial office in the country of domicile and authenticated by the Chinese embassy or consulate accredited to that country or, for the purpose of verification, must go through the formalities stipulated in the relevant bilateral treaties between China and that country.
(3) The person that participates in an action on behalf of a foreign enterprise or organization shall submit to the people's court the certificate on his or her right to participate in the action as the representative, which must be notarized by a notarial office in the country of domicile and authenticated by the Chinese embassy or consulate accredited to that country or, for the purpose of verification, must go through the the formalities stipulated in the relevant bilateral treaties between China and that country.
4. Litigation Representation
(1) When a foreign national, stateless person or foreign enterprise and organization needs lawyers as agents ad litem to bring an action or enter appearance on his or her behalf in the people’s court, he or she must appoint lawyers of the People’s Republic of China.
(2) The foreign party in a foreign-related civil action may appoint a person or lawyer, as a non-lawyer, with the same nationality as him or her to be his or her agent ad litem. Any official in the embassy or consulate of a foreign country in China may, upon entrustment of the citizen in his or her home country, serve as an agent ad litem in his or her own name; however, he or she will not enjoy diplomatic or consular privileges or immunities in the litigation.
(3) An embassy or consulate of a foreign country in China may entrust its official to appoint, under the name of a diplomatic representative, a lawyer of the People's Republic of China or a citizen of the People's Republic of China to be the civil litigation representative for a national of that foreign country when the national of that foreign country is involved in a case and not within the territory of the People's Republic of China.
(4) Any power of attorney mailed and forwarded by others means outside the territory of the People’s Public of China by a foreign party must be notarized by a notarial office in the country of domicile and authenticated by the Chinese embassy or consulate accredited to that country or, for the purpose of verification, must go through the formalities stipulated in the relevant bilateral treaties between China and that country. In the case of an agent ad litem that fails to complete the relevant procedures, the people's court will not recognize its agent qualifications.
(5) Where a foreign national or the representative of a foreign enterprise or organization signs a power of attorney for the appointment of an agent ad litem to institute a civil action as witnessed by the judge of the people's court, the people's court shall recognize it. Identification certificate and entry permit is required when endorsing the power of attorney. The legal representative of a foreign enterprise or organization shall, in addition to producing the identity certificate and entry permit of natural person, provide the evidentiary document produced by such legal person or other organization certifying that such legal representative or principal has the right to endorse the power of attorney, while such power of attorney shall be subject to notarization, accreditation, or other certification procedures.
5. Period for the Submission of the Defence
Where a defendant has no domicile within the territory of the People's Republic of China, the defendant shall file a defence within 30 days after the receipt of the copy of the statement of complaint. If the defendant applies for an extension of the aforesaid period, the extension shall be subject to the decision of the people's court.
6. Evidential Materials
(1) Where the written documents submitted by a party are in a foreign language, the party shall, at the same time, submit the Chinese translation text.
(2) If the evidence submitted by the parties concerned is formed beyond the territory of the People's Republic of China, the evidence shall be subject to the certification of the notarization organ of the country concerned or shall be subject to the certification formalities as provided in the relevant treaties concluded between the People's Republic of China and the said country, unless the genuineness of the evidence can be verified through the Internet or neither party has any objection to the genuineness of the evidence.
7. Litigation Translation
The People’s court shall conduct trials of civil and commercial cases involving foreign elements in the spoken and written language commonly used in the People’s Republic of China. Translation may be provided at the request of the parties concerned, and the expenses shall be borne by them.
8. Other Dispute Resolution Channels
(1) A party may select a mediator from the registers of specially-invited mediators provided by mediation platform of the people's court, or select a mediation organization beyond the registers.
(2) For a dispute appropriate to be mediated, before the cases is docketed, a people's court may assign a specially-invited mediation organization or specially-invited mediator to conduct mediation, or appoint a staff member in the court to conduct mediation.
(3) After the case is docketed, the mediation shall be conducted by the staff member of the court. Where a mediation agreement is reached, the undertook judge shall examine and make a mediation paper.
9. Period for Appeal
A party which has no domicile within the territory of the People's Republic of China shall have the right to appeal against a judgment or ruling of a people's court of first instance within 30 days from the date of service of the written judgment or ruling. If a party is unable to file an appeal within the statutory period and applies for an extension of the period, the application shall be subject to the decision of the people's court.
Comments