On 19 July 2024, the AALCO Hong Kong Regional Arbitration Centre (AALCO-HKRAC) actively supported and participated in the launch event of “2014-2023: A Ten-Year Review of the Ascertainment of Foreign Law” (hereinafter referred to as the “Observation on Ascertainment of Foreign Law”) held in Shenzhen. The Observation on Ascertainment of Foreign Law, (hereinafter called the BCI&BIMC) and AALCO-HKRAC, is China’s first comprehensive report on the ascertainment of foreign law.
Director of AALCO-HKRAC, Mr. Nick Chan, BBS MH JP attended the launch and delivered a keynote speech to the guests and was interviewed by several major media in Shenzhen. Mr. Chan pointed out that the Belt and Road Initiative has entered its second decade, and the trend for Chinese enterprises to “go global” has become an irreversible trend. The role of foreign law ascertainment in foreign judicial trials, commercial arbitration, and the protection of corporate rights is increasingly prominent. BCI&BIMC is China’s first dedicated legal ascertainment entity, and AALCO-HKRAC is the only arbitration institution in Hong Kong established under international law and with the status of an international organization, boasts the support of 48 AALCO member states (which are also active participants in the Belt and Road Initiative), presenting broad prospects for cooperation in promoting the ascertainment of foreign law services. Director Mr. Chan highly commended the BCI&BIMC as an authoritative, rapid, and cost-effective foreign law ascertainment institution with capacity, resources, and responsibility. It plays a significant role in providing services to domestic judicial institutions, arbitration centres, and enterprises, and will continue to play an essential part in the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative and the advancement of foreign-related rule of law.
Director Mr. Chan also stated that with the strong support of the Department of Justice of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, AALCO-HKRAC leverages legal technology to promote online alternative dispute resolution and offers peaceful resolutions for a range of disputes, including those related to international investment, commerce, and sports. AALCO-HKRAC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding and embarked on multifaceted cooperation with the BCI&BIMC.
The Observation on Ascertainment of Foreign Law comprehensively reviews China’s development of the foreign law ascertainment system over the past decade. Through typical cases, it clearly presents the specialised, international, and refined development path of foreign-related rule of law construction, demonstrating the important role and prospects of this system in promoting foreign-related rule of law construction in China, improving judicial quality and efficiency, and dealing with external risks and challenges. This system’s success in China provides reference for other countries’ judicial entities, arbitration institutions, and companies; likewise, as a leading global law ascertainment institution, the BCI&BIMC can also directly provide foreign law ascertainment services to outside regions, fulfilling the needs of parties from different areas.
The launch event attracted legal and business professionals from various regions and gained widespread media coverage. As one of the co-publishing entities of the Observation on Ascertainment of Foreign Law and the only arbitration institution to do so, the Centre will join hands with the legal and business communities in Mainland China, Hong Kong, and the Asian and African regions to jointly promote the development of the foreign law ascertainment system.
QR code download “2014-2023: A Ten-Year Review of the Ascertainment of Foreign Law”
