China
has become the engine of the world economy, it is also a substantial consumer
of arbitration. It now includes Hong Kong, which, in connection with its role
as Asia’s financial hub, has arisen as a major regional arbitration place.
However the two systems, in Hong Kong and Mainland China, continue to diverge
significantly: the former British colony has forged a legal and judicial framework
that is significantly more arbitration-friendly in every respect, and
particularly as far as the conditions of the validity of arbitration
agreements, the conduct of the procedure and the judicial review of awards are
concerned. The effect of the operation of the two separate systems in one
single country is being felt with Hong Kong’s pro-arbitration policy spreading
through the Mainland, where the legislation, the courts and the rules of the
major arbitration commissions, including CIETAC, are seeking to achieve
additional consistency and openness.