We were delighted to host Zhang Xi, General Counsel at Olympus China Group,  at our 国际仲裁者对 (Chinese Arbitration Conversation) session on 29 November 2023. 

It was valuable to hear Zhang Xi's perspectives as in-house counsel and the essential things that external counsel should be aware of when working with corporations. 

We were delighted to host Friven Yeoh, Partner at Sidley Austin in Hong Kong, at our last 国际仲裁者对 (Chinese Arbitration Conversation) session on 11 September 2023.

Of Malaysian Chinese heritage, Friven grew up in Singapore and also studied in Australia. He started his legal career at Freehills in Australia.

Initially interested in company law more than anything, he followed in a mentor's footsteps to become a litigator. He was fascinated by how every case was different.

Thanks to their dad, the kids in the family learned to love Chinese language and culture. Because of his language abilities, Friven decided to move back to Asia.

Friven shared the highlights of his career journey, including work on large and complex “bet the company” disputes.

He emphasised the importance of developing empathy for the client and seeing the world through their eyes.

He also shared invaluable advice with participants on developing our careers in arbitration. 

We were delighted to host Hee Theng Fong of The Arbitration Chambers for tonight's 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations).

We traversed Mr Hee’s 40-year-long career. After graduating in 1979 from the University of Singapore, he became a government lawyer. He earned his stripes in real estate work before becoming a disputes lawyer.

He encouraged us young lawyers to keep working hard and saw bilingualism (in English and Chinese) as a gift that should not be wasted. If one had the opportunity to study overseas, he would highly recommend it, particularly a BCL at Oxford or LLM at Cambridge.

He talked about the rise of mediation and the usefulness of mediation training. Mr Hee is himself a Specialist Mediator (China) and Ambassador of the Singapore Mediation Centre and an Accredited Mediator with the Singapore Mediation Centre.

**********

我很高兴能邀请到The Arbitration Chambers的Hee Theng Fong(许律师)参加9月4日的国际仲裁者对话活动。

职业生涯：许律师有长达40年的职业生涯。1979年，他从新加坡大学毕业后成为了一名政府律师。最初，他从事房地产工作并获得丰富的经验，后来，他成为了一名争议律师。

他鼓励我们这些年轻律师继续努力工作，并认为能够使用英文和中文双语是一份不应该浪费的上天给你的礼物。如果有机会到海外学习，他强烈推荐在牛津大学学习BCL或在剑桥大学学习LLM。

他谈到了调解的崛起和调解培训的实用性。许律师本人是中国的专家调解员，也是新加坡调解中心的大使和认证调解员。

We were delighted to host Weina Ye, International Partner at HSF Kewei, for tonight's 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversation).

Weina grew up in Mainland China and studied at the East China University of Political Science before moving to England to pursue a career as a solicitor.

She joined HSF as a trainee, working in London and Hong Kong, and fell in love with contentious work, ultimately moving back to Beijing focusing on international arbitration.

Weina shared with us the cases that impacted her the most over the course of her career, the establishment of the joint operation firm of Kewei in the PRC, the differences between adversarial and inquisitorial arbitrations, and more. 

We were delighted to host Chee Chong LAU of Omni Bridgeway for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 18 July 2023.

We talked about Chee Chong's career as a lawyer and his pivot to the third-party funding and enforcement/asset tracing space.

It was interesting to learn about the growth of third-party funding in Asia, especially in Mainland China (where funding is more common in arbitrations than in litigation).

We also talked about the different strategies applicable to asset tracing in the enforcement context, including the importance of identifying assets in favourable jurisdictions and other means of exerting pressure on creditors. 

We were delighted to host Fei Ning, Partner at Hui Zhong Law Firm, for a 国际仲裁者对话 on 11 July 2023.

Fei Ning is an innovator. We talked about his decision back in 2012-2013 to establish one of the first boutique litigation/arbitration law firms in China, and the more recent decision to establish a third-party funder.

We talked about how international arbitration has continued to internationalise, and the growth of Asian practitioners, including Mandarin speakers, in the field.

As he described his career, Fei Ning emphasised a single message: persevere and don't give up!

It was a pleasure to host Jonathan Lim (Partner at WilmerHale) for a 国际仲裁者对话 on 22 June 2023.

We talked about Jonathan's growing up and early career in Singapore before he went to Harvard for his LLM and his stint at the World Bank.

He started as a first-year associate at WilmerHale in London when the team was still small. He has had the opportunity to advise many governments and territories.

Jonathan also shared his tips on building an Asia-facing practice from London (spoiler: spend lots of time in the countries where your clients are!).

It was a pleasure to host Stephen Du of 7KBW for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 19 June 2023.

Stephen's childhood was spent both in Shanghai and the UK, but he settled in London to work as a barrister.

Stephen's practice is split between international trade and insurance matters - and he is one of the few fluent Mandarin-speaking English barristers regularly handling China-related matters.

We had a very interesting conversation about how he built a China-facing career from London; the split of work between barristers and solicitors, and junior barristers and lead counsel; and more. 

It was a pleasure to host Michelle Li, Partner at HSF, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 14 June 2023.

Hailing from HK, Michelle started her legal career at Masons (now Pinsent Masons) in HK, specialising in construction disputes. She later moved to China, where she splits her time between Shanghai and Beijing, and is a Partner at HSF.

We talked about the trends that Michelle has observed over her 15-year career, including the entry of international law firms into the PRC market; the cultural differences in resolving disputes in the PRC and elsewhere; and the evolution of international arbitration especially in the construction industry in the PRC.

Her advice: play to your strengths. Effective law firms will bring people together who have different skills and strengths.

It was a pleasure to host Huang Guoyong of SCIA (South China International Arbitration Centre) for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 13 June 2023.

Mr Huang studied in Xiamen and initially worked in financial institutions and government departments before joining SCIA in 2017.

We talked about the role of arbitral institutions in the PRC (there are around 270 of them!) and the major arbitration centres of Beijing, Shanghai and Shen Zhen.

The size of the arbitration market in the PRC is enormous, with new cases at SCIA exceeding 8000 in a year.

All in all, it was very interesting to get Mr Huang's insights from an arbitral institution's perspective on the development of arbitration in the PRC.

We were delighted to host not one, but two, guests from Norton Rose Fulbright: Alfred Wu and Kevin Hong for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 12 June 2023.

Both Alfred and Kevin have Canadian roots. Alfred started his career as a civil engineer before transitioning into law. He and Kevin both worked at Fried Frank before joining Norton Rose Fulbright.

We talked about many topics including the examination of experts in international arbitration; the differences between court/tribunal-appointed expert processes and party-appointed ones; the distinct features of arbitration in PRC-seated arbitrations; and more. 

We were delighted to host Zhang HaoLiang of the Beijing Arbitration Commission for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 8 June 2023.

A graduate of Tsing Hua University, Zhang HaoLiang started his career at the Beijing Arbitration Commission in 2006.

During his time at the Beijing Arbitration Commission, Zhang HaoLiang has overseen thousands of cases.

We discussed the Beijing Arbitration Commission's caseload (both domestic and international).

It was interesting to learn that, despite the huge number of administered arbitration cases in the PRC each year, they still form a small percentage compared with litigation cases. So, there is still a lot of room for arbitration in the PRC to grow!

We were delighted to host Helen Tang (Partner, HSF) for a 国际仲裁者对话 on 25 May 2023.

Hailing from Guangzhou, Helen studied law at Peking University before studying in the UK.

She later returned to Hong Kong as a trainee at HSF. Although it came as a complete surprise to her, she found litigation to be her favourite trainee seat and eventually qualified into the disputes team.

She later moved to Shanghai and became a partner at HSF.

We covered many interesting topics in the talk, including language barriers in international arbitration, the importance of understanding the client's culture, the evolution of arbitration in China and effective settlement negotiation strategies. 

We were delighted to host Wang Heng, Partner at Global Law Office in Beijing, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 23 May.

Heng has extensive experience in China-related international arbitration, including both international commercial arbitration and international investment treaty arbitration.

Her practice interfaces with litigation too, and she has represented clients before the Chinese International Commercial Court. 

We were delighted to host Felicia Tan, Partner at TSMP Law Corporation, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 23 May.

Hailing from Singapore, Felicia studied in the UK on a Singapore Government scholarship. After returning to Singapore and working in the civil service, she moved to private practice, beginning her career at one of Singapore's big four firms.

Now at TSMP Law Corporation, Felicia has built an impressive career focusing on commercial, employment and insolvency disputes.

One of the highlights of her career included donning a safety helmet and gumboots for a client site visit. We all appreciated Felicia's commitment to always continuing to learn and develop in her legal career.

We were delighted to host Kian Heong Hew, Partner at HSF Kewei, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 22 May.

Hailing from Shanghai, Hew's career has spanned Hong Kong and Mainland China.

He is a giant in the field of construction arbitration. He started his legal career in Hong Kong, working on major construction projects, before starting the Shanghai and Beijing offices of Pinsent Masons. He later joined Herbert Smith Freehills Kewei. 

We were delighted to host Kian Heong Hew, Partner at HSF Kewei, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 22 May.

Hailing from Shanghai, Hew's career has spanned Hong Kong and Mainland China.

He is a giant in the field of construction arbitration. He started his legal career in Hong Kong, working on major construction projects, before starting the Shanghai and Beijing offices of Pinsent Masons. He later joined Herbert Smith Freehills Kewei. 

We had a wonderful home-cooked Chinese meal with our members in London on 18 May 2023. What a wonderful community we are so lucky to be part of.

Thank you very much to Andrew Burr and Coco for hosting us. 

We had an absolutely wonderful first-ever in-person event in Beijing last week, on 11 May 2023! 

XXWe were delighted to host Dr Xueji Su (a postdoctoral fellow at the City University of Hong Kong) for a 国际中餐沙龙 session tonight on State-owned enterprises in World Trade Organisation disputes.

We covered many interesting issues, including:

🌟 The definition of SOEs under WTO law and other treaties, including the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment between the EU and the PRC, and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

🌟 Issues involving investment policy and control regarding SOEs

🌟 Investment treaty cases involving SOEs and their treatment 

We were delighted to host Dr Xueji Su (a postdoctoral fellow at the City University of Hong Kong) for a 国际中餐沙龙 session tonight on State-owned enterprises in World Trade Organisation disputes.

We covered many interesting issues, including:

🌟 The definition of SOEs under WTO law and other treaties, including the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment between the EU and the PRC, and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

🌟 Issues involving investment policy and control regarding SOEs

🌟 Investment treaty cases involving SOEs and their treatment 

We were delighted to host the first Cantonese event in the 国际仲裁者对话 （粤语版）series with David Fong, Barrister at Harcourt Chambers.

David started his career not as a lawyer but as an accountant. He later studied for a law degree by distance learning and after PCLL in Hong Kong, joined Harcourt Chambers, where he still is 10 years later.

David's three-pronged advice for young lawyers has three "Ps": persistence, preparation and presence.

We also enjoyed a delicious dinner of xiao long bao and other delicious treats afterwards!

We were delighted to host Xin Zhang (Partner, Global Law Office) for 国际仲裁者对话 tonight.

Xin started his legal studies at Xiamen University before going to London, where he studied for a PhD on scholarship.

He began his career in private practice at Linklaters in banking and finance and later joined the partnership at the Global Law Office.

His advice for young practitioners is to keep our career options broad. It may be wise to specialise in more than one area as the availability of legal work can be cyclical.

Xin has demonstrated that nimbleness in his own career, both as a transactional and disputes lawyer (including in investment treaty cases).

We were delighted to host Shahla Ali (Professor at the University of Hong Kong or HKU) for 国际仲裁者对话 tonight.

Born in the US to European/Persian parents, Shahla spent her early life in California. She fell in love with Chinese culture as a young person and spent some time in China before attending Stanford.

After some initial research work for the Baháʼí community in Israel, she returned to California to study for her JD/PhD. After a few years at a law firm, she became an academic.

She moved to Hong Kong 14 years ago and has never looked back. She initially came to teach the then newly-created LLM programme in arbitration and ADR, and is now Associate Dean (International) of HKU.

Shahla hosted us for tea and french toast at the beautiful Senior Common Room at HKU.

We were delighted to host Ronald Sum, JP (Partner at Baker & McKenzie) for 国际仲裁者对话 tonight.

Over the past 28 years in practice, Ronald has seen a great deal of change in the world of international arbitration. We talked about the growing connections between Hong Kong and the Mainland, including the possibility for Hong Kong lawyers to qualify as lawyers in the Greater Bay Area.

He has worked at a variety of firms - large and small - and shared his perspectives on working in these different firms.

He also has a keen interest in sports, especially tennis, and is one of the few HK/Chinese sports arbitrators.

We were delighted to host Daryl Chew (Partner, Three Crowns) at tonight's 国际仲裁者对话 session.

After spending almost a decade and a half at Shearman & Sterling, Daryl joined Three Crowns (my old firm!) as the Head of the Singapore office in January 2022.

We covered many interesting topics, including:

⭐ Arbitration and disputes trends in Asia

⭐ Lessons from his practice on getting to the nub of a case

⭐ The increasing need for specialist expertise in international arbitration

⭐ Some of the most challenging experiences of his professional career

⭐ His advice for young arbitration practitioners

⭐ The importance of giving back to the arbitration community 

We were delighted to host Guo Cai, Partner at Jin Mao Law Firm, tonight.

Hailing from Sichuan, Guo Cai studied around the world - in China, the US and Hong Kong.

Guo Cai built her sports arbitration from scratch. After volunteering at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, she persisted in building her client base.

We discussed many interesting topics, including:

- the role of sports in Chinese culture

- the development of "compelled" sports arbitration to resolve disputes

- high-profile cases involving Chinese athletes

- the differences and similarities between sports arbitration and commercial arbitration generally

- the intersection of sports law and entertainment law.

We were delighted to host CunYuan Zhang, the Singapore International Arbitration Centre's Head (China).

CunYuan studied law as a postgraduate degree at Peking University School of Transnational Law in Shenzhen. He was involved in several moot competitions, and his team was crowned winner of the CIETAC Cup.

After spending several years in Cao Lijun's international arbitration team at Zhong Lun, he joined SIAC as the Chief Representative of its Shanghai Representative Office. Last year, he was promoted to Head (China).

We talked about SIAC's priorities in China and the attitudes of Chinese parties towards international arbitration. 

We were delighted to host Yiwen (Wenny) Huang, FCIArb, the 上海仲裁委员会 Shanghai Arbitration Commission's Head & Director, International Partnership & Arbitration Development, for a 国际仲裁者对 session tonight (11 April 2023).

Born and raised in Shanghai, Wenny has held a variety of legal roles. After graduating from the East China University of Political Science and Law, she interned at the Shanghai Arbitration Committee, where she was involved in Moot Shanghai.

She then went in-house, first working at the Walt Disney Company (Shanghai) Limited and then at FansTang/China Branding Group - where she focused on entertainment law.

Around 2016, when the ICC, HKIAC and SIAC all opened representative offices in Shanghai, Wenny led ICC Arbitration & ADR, North Asia, together with Ming Chao.

She later left for the Singapore International Mediation Centre, which gave her direct experience with mediation (including witnessing the signing of the Singapore Convention).

Her career has since come full circle, returning to the Shanghai Arbitration Commission as its Head of International Partnership.

We were delighted to host Xu Zhihe, the Director of the Research Department at the 上海国际仲裁中心-Shanghai International Arbitration Center (SHIAC) at our Chinese Arbitration Conversation today, 10 April 2023.

Born and raised in Shanghai, Xu ZhiHe's interest in arbitration began at university, where he was involved in mooting competitions.

After a stint at a law firm, he joined the Secretariat of SHIAC, where he has acted as tribunal secretary in more than 700 arbitration cases.

Xu ZhiHe gave us a brief history of arbitral institutions in China and an overview of recent trends involving arbitral institutions in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.

We also discussed the cultural differences that can arise in international arbitration, especially when it comes to parties' expectations of the arbitration

We were delighted to host Raymond Zhu FCIArb, Senior Partner at Dentons.

Hailing from Liaoning, the law was not an obvious pathway for Raymond. His first love was foreign languages, especially English, and he added law to his repertoire.

He studied law at the China University of Political Science and Law. He spent some time overseas, including studying for an LLM at LSE and working at Herbert Smith Freehills and at Stone Chambers, Gray's Inn.

We talked about his three-decade long career and the growth in international arbitration involving Chinese parties during this period.

We were delighted to host Henry Shi, Partner at JunHe LLP, at tonight's 国际仲裁者对话 on 3 April 2023.

Xinyue grew up in Beijing and went to Peking University. He interned at JunHe but did his LLM at LSE before rejoining the firm (where he's been for 20-odd years).

He recalled what it was like to enjoy London on a shoestring budget as a student and learning to cook for himself (while studying EU law!).

We loved the lessons he shared with us:

- Get experience in two or three areas of law: the diversity may give you options in the future.

- Do what interests you. Xinyue is not only a lawyer, but he has also published a book and hosts a podcast! 

We were delighted to host Chungang Dong, Partner at JingTian & GongCheng Law Firm, at tonight's 国际仲裁者对话 on 27 March 2023.

Chungang comes from Liaoning and went on to study English and law at the China University of Political Science and Law.

His first job out of law school was working at CIETAC before joining Jingtian & Gongcheng in 2006, where he is the Head of the Arbitration Practice.

We were lucky to host Vera Weirong He today for a 国际仲裁者对话 session. Our meeting coincided with Vis Moot East, where Vera’s own arbitration career began.

We talked about Vera’s happy childhood, her foreign law studies at university, her early career which took her to Europe and Hong Kong (among other places) and her pioneering career at the ICC in Shanghai.

We were delighted to host Yuqi (Sarah) Zhu, Counsel at Paul Hastings, for tonight's 国际仲裁者对话. Sarah hails from Shanghai, studied at Fudan University, and has worked at law firms in the PRC, Hong Kong and New York. 

She shared invaluable advice with our participants: choose your career well, but remember also to do what you love outside of work.

What a fantastic Spring Dinner with our Mandarin Arbitration Salon/国际仲裁沙龙 members in Hong Kong. 

Thanks to everyone who joined us, and a special thanks to Francis Chung for organising.

We were delighted to host Liu Yuwu (Partner, King & Wood Mallesons) at tonight's 国际仲裁者对话.

We talked about Liu Yuwu’s decision to study international economic law at university, his early career at CIETAC and his practice at King & Wood Mallesons.

He shared learnings from managing parallel multi-jurisdictional litigation and arbitration proceedings and his tips for working with Chinese witnesses.

We were delighted to host Lei Shi, a Partner at Clifford Chance, for tonight’s 国际仲裁者对话。

Lei started his legal studies at Peking University before working at Fangda. He had the time of his life studying for his LLM at Harvard before moving to HK to work at Clifford Chance, and later moving to its Beijing office.

Lei shared his thoughts on disputes trends involving Chinese clients over his decades of practice.

We were delighted to have Rede Chambers host the 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon's first-ever hybrid event today.

Clark Wang shared with us stories from studying at Tsinghua University before getting a scholarship to the University of Hong Kong.

He knew from the get-go that he wanted to be a barrister, and last year, he founded Rede Chambers, a leading international dispute resolution chambers in Hong Kong.

He shared how cross-cultural understanding can enhance a lawyer's work and the challenges and rewards of advocating in not one - but three - languages.

We were delighted to host ICC Arbitration Singapore's Hazel Tang and Jasmine Ching-En Feng (馮竫恩) for a 国际仲裁者对话 session tonight.

We talked about Hazel's background from Hong Kong and Singapore, her career at Rajah & Tann (including a three-year stint in Shanghai) and her leadership of ICC Singapore.

We also discussed Jasmine's growing up in Taiwan, getting qualified in four jurisdictions, her private practice work in several jurisdictions and the new perspectives she's gained at the ICC.

We were delighted to host Ling YANG, Deputy Secretary-General and Chief Representative of the Shanghai Office of the HKIAC, for tonight's 国际仲裁这对话 session.

We talked about Ling's early academic career (in the PRC and the US) and groundbreaking work at the HKIAC in Shanghai. The HKIAC was the first international arbitration institution to open a representative office in mainland China in 2015.

We were delighted to host Qingjing Meng for a 国际仲裁沙龙 session on the role of experts in construction disputes today. 

We discussed typical construction disputes, the importance of delay analysis, examples of crucial documents to support a claim, the role of experts in these types of disputes, and more.

We were delighted to host Crystal Wong Wai Chin, Partner at LHAG in Malaysia, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 19 January 2023. 

We talked about the growth of international arbitration in Malaysia, Malaysia's arbitration framework, the impact of the Belt & Road Initiative on international arbitration in Malaysia, and more.

Kicking off the new year with a 国际仲裁沙龙 session with Helen Wang (Partner, Carey Olsen) and Elizabeth Chan (陳曉彤) (Senior Registered Foreign Lawyer, Allen & Overy) on the topic of "The Crypto Winter - Recent Trends".

What a wonderful note to end 2022 on: in good cheer and over delicious dim sum in Hong Kong. Wishing everyone a very happy 2023!

Thank you very much to all our members and speakers for joining our 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon sessions this year. Only launched in December 2021, our Founder, Elizabeth Chan (陳曉彤) , organised more than 50 sessions this year, with hundreds of members in our group.

Wishing everyone happy holidays and a wonderful new year!

时光飞逝，2022年即将过去，在这一年我们都经历了很多很多。 我们的国际仲裁沙龙也正是在这个疫情不断发生的情况之下成功创立了。 在这里，非常感谢朋友们对国际仲裁沙龙的支持。 国际仲裁沙龙创立以来，我们共举办了超过50场的国际仲裁沙龙和国际仲裁者对话的活动。 令我欣慰的是：我们的这个线上沙龙活动出人意料的受到广大业内人士的喜爱和认可。 每一次组织和参加活动都让我获益良多。 通过这些活动，我们也对跟国内有关的仲裁纠纷有了更加深入地了解。 在圣诞佳节来临之际，我祝大家圣诞节快乐，新年万事如意！ 同时在这里通知大家一个好消息：我们下周二（12月27日）会举办一个小型聚会（提供点心），地点：Tao Heung，TST，欢迎在香港的各位同仁参加。 同时，在这里，也希望我们全世界各国的各位同仁能早日见面。 期待我们在2023年再相聚。 -- 陈晓彤

We were delighted to host Yijia Nan, Deputy General Counsel at China Energy Engineering Group Co. Ltd., for our final 国际仲裁者对话 session of the year, on 20 December 2022. It was interesting to discuss the in-house perspective on resolving, in particular, the benefits and disadvantages of international arbitration.

We were delighted to host Sophia Feng, International Counsel at Allen & Gledhill LLP, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 19 December 2022. We talked about her growing up and early career in Beijing, her move to the US to study for an LLM (on a full scholarship), and her return to Asia - joining SIAC in Singapore, and then opening its Shanghai office - before returning to Singapore to join Allen & Gledhill.

One thing you may not have known: Sophia is also an NFT artist!

We were delighted to host Dr. Fan Yang, Legal Counsel at China Harbour Engineering Co. Ltd, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session. We talked about her career as an academic, in private practice and in-house, and how the perspectives gained in her different roles has enriched her international legal career.

We were delighted to host Zhuonan DU (Joanna) of King & Wood Mallesons for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 12 December 2022. We talked about Joanna's education in Mainland China, the award of an HSF PRC Scholarship, her traineeship in HK / Beijing / London, and her transition to King & Wood Mallesons.

We were delighted host Edward Liu MH, Partner at Haiwen & Partners, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 1 December 2022. We talked about his growing up in Tianjin, following in his father's footsteps of becoming a lawyer, his specialisation in maritime / shipping law ("Contract law is the Crown of English law, and shipping is its pearl."), his work both for international and Chinese law firms, his advice for young practitioners (read court judgments to hone your legal analysis), and more.

We were delighted to host Winnie Tam SBS SC JP for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 29 November 2022, discussing Winnie's upbringing in Hong Kong, her love for music and how it shaped her decision to pursue a career in IP law, how her ear for music helped her to master Mandarin tones without formally learning it, the growth of international arbitration in Hong Kong, the role of judges and arbitrators, and more.

What fun to host Dr. Anran ZHANG of ICC Arbitration for our 国际仲裁者对话 on 28 November 2022. From Harbin to the world: Anran studied in different European studies (earning a PhD), before joining the AIAC in Malaysia, and becoming part of the ICC North Asia team this year.

We were delighted to host Patrick Zheng, Partner at Llinks Law Offices, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 23 November 2022, discussing his education and career, spanning the US and China. Beginning his career at CIETAC, Patrick went on to become partner at several international law firms and is now partner at Llinks Law Offices based in California.

We were delighted to host Christine乂 Kang康, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 22 November 2022, discussing her education and career. Christine grew up in Inner Mongolia, studied there, as well as in Beijing, France and the US, spent the first 8 years of her career at CIETAC, and pursued an international career spanning China and the US. Her advice for young practitioners is to be open-minded about the direction that your career may take you.

We were pleased to host Professor Susan Finder, Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Peking University School of Transnational Law, for a 国际仲裁者对话 session on 15 November 2022, discussing her education and career. Professor Finder is a graduate of Yale, Harvard and Columbia, speaks Russian and Chinese, spent over a decade in law firms before transitioning into academia and becoming an expert and blogger on the PRC Supreme Court.

国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon was pleased to host Ing Loong Yang, Partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, for a 国际仲裁者对话 / Chinese Arbitration Conversation on 14 November 2022, discussing his career, from doing military service in Singapore, to qualifying as a barrister at Middle Temple, to partnership at several law firms in Singapore, the PRC and Hong Kong.

We were pleased to host Daphne Tay, the CEO and Co-Founder of Bluente - the business Chinese learning app - for a 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon, on 9 November 2022.

We were pleased to host a 国际仲裁沙龙之友：Beihai Asia International Arbitration Centre - BAIAC session with Shumin Lin of Drew & Napier LLC on 8 November 2022, on the topic of expedited and emergency arbitral procedures under the SIAC Rules.

国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon was pleased to host Peter Neumann, J.D, LL.M, FCIArb,Principal,Arbitrator for a 国际仲裁者对话 / Chinese Arbitration Conversation on 1 November 2022, discussing his career, spanning the US and China.

Jingzhou Tao is an Independent Arbitrator at Arbitration Chambers, and our guest at the recent session of 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations). He was born in the province of An Hui. 

He was not only accepted into Peking University but also took the opportunity to study comparative law in France as part of Deng Xiao Ping’s policy to give Chinese Masters students the opportunity to study abroad. He would go on to become one of the first Chinese lawyers to be qualified as a French lawyer.

After studying French and English, while pursuing a law degree (all at the same time!), Jingzhou decided to stay on in France.  He focused on serving European clients investing in China. He would later return to China, and help Coudert Brothers get its license to operate in China – then ground-breaking for an international law firm. He shared with us his observations about how international arbitration has evolved over the last 30 years of his study and practice. 

The use of international arbitration has continued to grow, as has its complexity.  It is helpful to be multilingual, for example, many Belt and Road projects involve Chinese-African partnerships, where the contracts are written in French.

His advice for young practitioners building a career in international arbitration was two-fold. First, approach your career as an opportunity to learn.  Be humble enough to recognise that you do not know everything. And second, build your networks now, including by attending events like tonight’s webinar.  In the future, you may find opportunities to collaborate and work together.

Jingzhou Tao is an Independent Arbitrator at Arbitration Chambers, and our guest at the recent session of 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations). He was born in the province of An Hui. 

He was not only accepted into Peking University but also took the opportunity to study comparative law in France as part of Deng Xiao Ping’s policy to give Chinese Masters students the opportunity to study abroad. He would go on to become one of the first Chinese lawyers to be qualified as a French lawyer.

After studying French and English, while pursuing a law degree (all at the same time!), Jingzhou decided to stay on in France.  He focused on serving European clients investing in China. He would later return to China, and help Coudert Brothers get its license to operate in China – then ground-breaking for an international law firm. He shared with us his observations about how international arbitration has evolved over the last 30 years of his study and practice. 

The use of international arbitration has continued to grow, as has its complexity.  It is helpful to be multilingual, for example, many Belt and Road projects involve Chinese-African partnerships, where the contracts are written in French.

His advice for young practitioners building a career in international arbitration was two-fold. First, approach your career as an opportunity to learn.  Be humble enough to recognise that you do not know everything. And second, build your networks now, including by attending events like tonight’s webinar.  In the future, you may find opportunities to collaborate and work together.

At tonight's 国际仲裁沙龙之友：Beihai Asia International Arbitration Centre - BAIAC / Friends of the Mandarin Arbitration Salon, Godwin Tan 陈格伦 and Matthew Chan led a discussion on the vexed issue of which law governs an arbitration agreement.

Each described the competing approaches taken respectively by the UK Supreme Court and the French Cour de Cassation in the Kabab-Ji matter. This case concerned, among other things, whether a non-signatory to an arbitration agreement was bound by it.

The answer to that question would depend on the applicable law. In this case, the original signatories to the arbitration agreement had chosen English law to govern the main contract, but Paris as the seat.

Put briefly, the English Court considered that, in the absence of parties' choice, the governing law of the main contract should presumptively be the law of the main agreement, whereas the French Court considered it should be the law of the seat.

This dispute raised many interesting discussion points.

First, should jurisprudence on this vexed question be harmonised, and if so, in which direction? We discussed how divergence in jurisprudence could lead to forum shopping, and have important implications at the enforcement stage.

Second, what are the relevant underlying policy considerations? What can sophisticated commercial parties be expected to understand regarding the (not necessarily intuitive notion of the) separability of arbitration agreements?

Third, we also compared this divergence in jurisprudence in other contexts, for example, the Dallah v Pakistan decisions. How do we balance issues of finality, on the one hand, and the autonomy of each enforcing court, on the other? In this regard, we drew on the theory of autonomous arbitration offered by the late Professor Emmanuel Gaillard (who taught my Yale LLM class on this very subject).

We had a lively and vibrant discussion on these and many related issues.

Dr. Helena H. C. Chen, FCIArb, a Senior Partner at Chen & Chang, Attorneys-at-Law in Taiwan, made one of her early friends in arbitration in the CIETAC library in China. She was studying for her Phd at the time, and found that the CIETAC library was much better stocked with arbitration texts than the Peking University law library!

Helena shared with us these gems and many others during her 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations) session. She grew up in Taiwan and went to university there. An exchange programme brought her to the US, and she ended up writing not one but two Masters papers on arbitration topics. Helena is an expert on construction arbitration. This was not surprising given the Taiwanese law firm (Formosan Brothers), where she started her career, was one of the biggest players in this industry.

She later moved to the PRC and joined Pinsent Masons, eventually becoming the Joint Head of Office, China. There are so many different contexts in which construction arbitration arises, from bridges to airports. Her line of work led to many interesting site visits – including climbing to the top of Taipei 101, before it was even open to the public.

There are so many ways to resolve construction disputes too – not limited to arbitration but also other forms of ADR, including disputes boards and FIDIC dispute resolution.

Helena also sits as one of 14 members of the standing committee of the ICC International Centre for ADR, whose services include mediation, expert appraisal and dispute boards.

Building on an earlier session with Winnie Jo-Mei Ma, we talked about Taiwan as a seat of arbitration. Although there is draft amendment legislation to modernise arbitration in Taiwan, it has not been passed yet. Taiwan is not yet an UNCITRAL Model Law jurisdiction and is not a signatory to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. Taiwanese arbitration law also has some interesting quirks. For example, Taiwanese arbitration centres all have to charge the same administrative fees.

For young practitioners looking to build Asia facing careers, Helena recommended participating in events like our one, to meet other young people working in arbitration.

Elizabeth Chan (陳曉彤), our Founder, has wanted to meet Wei Sun, a Partner at Zhong Lun, for several years (since he was selected as a speaker for the ICCA Congress), and tonight finally had the chance to meet him at our 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations) session!

💠 Wei studied in the PRC, before pursuing further study in London, at SOAS and QMUL.  He has been at Zhong Lun since 2003, and for a period he shuttled between the PRC and the United States.

💠 Wei has achieved many “firsts” in his career, among which includes sitting as the first emergency arbitrator in the PRC. A quirk of the PRC arbitration system is that parties cannot make emergency relief applications directly to the courts.  An application is made to an institution, which then transfers it to a court. Nonetheless many Chinese arbitral rules provide for emergency arbitration, as such awards can be enforced abroad. Wei recalled the particular care he paid to his reasoning in his award, given its precedential value in future emergency relief cases.

💠 Wei was also able to obtain a successful outcome for a client in relation to an award that was challenged for reasons of violating public policy before the PRC courts. It was interesting to learn about the reporting procedure in the PRC. where decisions to refuse enforcement are referred to the Supreme Court. These decisions are referred “internally” to the Supreme Court so parties do not have the opportunity to present oral submissions before the Court.

💠 Wei’s had decades of experience representing Chinese clients, including SOEs.  During this time, the practice of arbitration has evolved. First, there are more and more international cases, involving all different overseas jurisdictions.  In this regard, relationships with local counsel have become more and more important. Second, there is an increasing number of construction disputes. Third, Chinese parties are not only using domestic litigation but also commercial and treaty arbitration. Fourth, there’s increasing work with quantum experts.

💠 Wei also served as the presiding dispute review expert in the first case applying the Construction Project Disputes Review Rules of CIETAC.

💠 He recommended that young practitioners get experience in an arbitration hub and then return to the PRC.  Experience in the PRC will allow you to truly understand the needs of Chinese clients.

The wonderful thing about working at China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) for more than two decades is how the job keeps reinventing itself. At tonight’s 国际仲裁这对话, we heard from FEI LU, the Director of the Business Development Division of CIETAC.

She joined CIETAC somewhat accidentally - a university friend was applying for a job there, and seeing as they required English majors, she put her hat in the ring too.  Of course, she got the job!

20 years later, Lu Fei knows the organisation back to front.  We talked about the things that make CIETAC distinct–arbitration that is international yet Chinese. Many features of CIETAC’s Rules reflect international practice, like joinder, consolidation and emergency arbitrations. Yet in other ways it is different, for example, emergency relief applications are made to the institution, which then refers it to the relevant court.

Within China, CIETAC has extensive reach, administering thousands of cases each year.  It also cooperates with the recently-established Chinese International Commercial Court to accommodate the disputes needs of Chinese parties or parties involved in cases with Chinese elements. It also has an international outlook, with Memoranda of Understanding with many overseas institutions.  It also has three overseas offices, in Hong Kong, Vienna and Canada.

Case management officers also play the role of tribunal secretary, although, in line with international developments, that role has become less substantive over time. CIETAC is alive to issues of security in arbitration, for example, using face-recognition software to permit entry into its own bespoke virtual hearing room.

Lu Fei concluded the session with her advice for young lawyers:
- Keep persevering!
- To build a career in Asia, learn not only the relevant language, but also the culture.  Cross-cultural understanding is key to understanding the motivations of parties, in order to make effective arguments and to reach sound conclusions.

Delighted to host 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon's second Mandarin-language careers panel focused on "Meeting the Institutions in Asia" tonight.

We heard from Shae Calissa Teo of Maxwell Chambers, Sicen (Esther) Hu of the HKIAC and Jintao Ou of CIETAC Hong Kong Arbitration Center about:

💠 Their own pathways into arbitration and their current roles at each of their institutions.

💠 What makes each of their institutions distinct and their contributions to the development of international arbitration.

💠 The trends they've seen at their institutions as regards arbitrations involving Chinese parties, Chinese law, Chinese counsel, Chinese language, and other Chinese elements.

💠 Special topics: the impact of COVID-19 on the provision of hearing services; Online Dispute Resolution; third-party funding; tribunal secretaries; the many different roles that counsel at arbitral institutions can play; and more.

💠 Their advice for young practitioners looking to build an Asia-facing career: develop your relationships and networks; learning Chinese can help (but don't feel disappointed if you are starting your first steps: keep persevering!); be purposeful in your career but be flexible if it doesn't pan out as planned. Thank you very much again to our speakers, and to everyone who participated!

John Han, a Partner at Kobre & Kim, left Mainland China when he was four, and grew in the US Mid-West.  Originally trained as a software engineer, a course in technology law got him hooked on the law. 

John’s subsequent legal career took him all over the US and to Asia, and he eventually moved to Hong Kong (with his trusty pal, his dog). John shared with us his enforcement work at Kobre & Kim, where he assists clients with monetising their judgments and arbitral awards. 

At our 国际仲裁者对话 session today, John emphasised the importance of thinking creatively about strategies that put maximum pressure on judgment/award debtors.  It might not always be possible to get the full picture, but you can use different strategies to piece together the facts and find points of pressure.

John concluded our wonderful conversation with his advice for young practitioners: do work that you love.

Mariana Zhong (Li), a Partner at Hui Zhong Law Firm | 汇仲律师事务所,  is one of the leading lawyers of the growing ISDS market in the PRC.  We were lucky to host her as our guest at 国际仲裁者对话 today, discussing the evolving arbitration market in the PRC, including the offerings by international and local law firms, and the increasing interest in third-party funding.

Mariana also shared her advice for young practitioners: “Becoming professionally independent and building one’s own brand is a must-do. It is a journey that requires tons of courage, confidence, patience and perseverance, but it feels good and it indeed gets better and better over time. My recommendation is to have faith, be confident, be brave, deal with anxiety and stress, aim low, and start small.”

Winnie Jo-Mei Ma, an Independent Arbitrator, shared with us her unique insights into arbitration in Taiwan tonight. As former Deputy Secretary-General of the Chinese Arbitration Association, Taipei, Winnie played an instrumental role in internationalising arbitration in Taiwan, including introducing world-class arbitration rules for the CAA. Winnie shared with us her thoughts on arbitration law in Taiwan, the caseload of the CAA, enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Taiwan and more. We were very lucky to have Winnie as our guest at tonight’s 国际仲裁者对话.

Xia Li’s career has spanned the cityscape of Hong Kong and the beaches of the Cayman Islands to the ancient grandeur of Beijing and the lion gates of Singapore. She worked in major international law firms in commercial and treaty arbitration before transitioning to offshore firms doing offshore litigation and restructuring. It was a joy to host Xia, Counsel at Carey Olsen, at tonight’s 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon.

Our Founder, Elizabeth Chan (陳曉彤), remembers many happy childhood hours spent playing Snake on my Nokia 3310.  Her first Mobile Game, you could say! How exciting to learn about recent developments in the gaming industry in the PRC, with Charles Yu of Pillar Legal, P.C. as our guest at tonight’s 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon.

It was especially interesting to learn about the process of applying for approval for games launched in the PRC market, the trends relating to NFT games in the PRC, and potential disputes risks for Chinese and foreign companies in the gaming/tech industry.

At tonight’s 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon, 陈晓山, Partner at DLA Piper shared his journey from studying maritime law in Southhampton to practising international arbitration in Hong Kong & Shanghai. Xiaoshan shared with us his wise advice on having a sustainable and fulfilling career, alongside a happy and meaningful personal life.

Peter Thorp’s discussion tonight at 国际仲裁者对话 was special to our Founder, Elizabeth Chan (陳曉彤), for several reasons. One - our shared heritage as New Zealanders. Two - our mutual love for Chinese language and culture. Third - his leadership of Allen & Overy in both China and France inspires Lizzie's own career at the firm. 

At tonight’s 国际仲裁沙龙 Mandarin Arbitration Salon之友：Beihai Asia International Arbitration Centre - BAIAC, Helen Wang of Carey Olsen shared with us her top tips on how you can use remedies available in offshore jurisdictions to assist onshore arbitrations. This was very relevant to my own practice, where we frequently manage or conduct parallel proceedings in offshore and onshore jurisdictions.

Helen Shi, Partner at Fangda Partners, has worn so many hats in her arbitration career - at CIETAC, at private law firms in the US and the PRC, as arbitrator, as VP of the ICC Arbitration Court of Arbitration, and more. What wonderful perspectives she shared with us tonight in the fifth session of 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations). When Helen did her LLM at the University of Pennsylvania in the 1990s, she was one of only two PRC students!

From the US, China, London and back to the US, Meg Utterback, Partner at King & Wood Mallesons, took us on a whirlwind tour of her career in arbitration and litigation. It was wonderful to learn about how Meg’s love for Chinese language and culture developed and her time studying law in China in the 1980s.

Tonight Lijun Cao, Partner at Zhong Lun, took us on a journey of the evolution of international arbitration in the PRC over the last 20-25 years.  He was our guest of honour at the third session of 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations).  We each took away concrete advice on how we can build Asia-facing practices from wherever in the world we practise.

David Gu, Partner at Jun He Law Offices, in Beijing offered us a window into the world of arbitration in the PRC in today’s session of 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations). We talked about David’s upbringing in China, his legal education in China and the US, the comparative strengths of international and local firms (and hybrids) operating in China, trends in arbitration subject matter in China, his advice for young practitioners, and more.

Delighted to kick off our 国际仲裁者对话 (Chinese Arbitration Conversations) series with Anton Ware, Partner at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP. We talked about Anton’s upbringing in the US, his education in China and the US, how his arbitration/litigation practice has evolved during his career to date, his thoughts on investment treaty arbitration, his advice for young practitioners looking to break into the China/Asian arbitration market, and more.

What fun to learn about ESG in Mandarin! Many thanks to Derric Yeoh, Partner at Donaldson & Burkinshaw LLP, for sharing his knowledge about ESG disputes risks and ways to resolve these disputes.

We had a brilliant 国际仲裁沙龙之友：Women in Arbitration (WIA，仲裁女性俱乐部）session featuring 钟玲玲 Lingling ZHONG of Jin Mao Partners facilitating a discussion in Mandarin language on 公共利益 (public policy) in the PRC.