Chapter 1 General Provisions
Article 1 In order to independently ,impartially and promptly arbitrate civil and commercial disputes and thereby protect the parties' legitimate rights and interests, Harbin Arbitration Commission adopts these Rules in accordance with the Arbitration Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the “Arbitration Law” )and the provisions of other relevant laws thereof.
Article 2 Harbin Arbitration Commission (hereinafter referred to as the “Arbitration Law”) is a permanent arbitration institution which is registered and established in Harbin, China for resolving civil and commercial disputes in accordance with Arbitration Law.
The Arbitration Commission shall establish a Panel of Arbitrators.
Article 3 The Arbitration Commission accept contractual disputes and other disputes over rights and interests in property between natural persons, legal persons and other organizations inside and /or outside of the People's Republic of China.
Article 4 The following disputes shall not be submitted to the Arbitration Commission for arbitration:
(1) disputes over marriage, adoption, guardianship, child maintenance and inheritance;
(2) administrative disputes falling within the jurisdiction of the relevant administrative organs according to law;
(3) labor disputes and agricultural contract disputes arising within the agricultural collective economic organization;
(4) disputes which shall be adjudicated by other specialized agencies or organizations in accordance with the law.
Article 5 The Arbitration Commission accept cases on the basis of the Statement of Claim and the arbitration agreement.
An arbitration agreement is an agreement by the parties concluded before or after the occurrence of the dispute to submit their dispute for arbitration, including an arbitration clause in a contract or any other form of written agreement providing for the settlement of disputes by arbitration.
Other form of written agreement refers to contractual instruments, letters and electronic data messages and any other visible forms of expressions indicating the parties' wish to submit to arbitration.
Article 6 An arbitration agreement shall be treated independent per se. The validity of an arbitration agreement shall not be affected by the modification, transfer, avoidance, termination, ineffectiveness, invalidity, expiry or revocation of the principal contract.
Article 7 The arbitral tribunal shall follow the principle of impartiality and reasonableness ,independently ,impartially and promptly arbitrate the cases on the basis of facts and in accordance with the law.
The arbitral award shall be final and binding.
Article 8 The parties shall be deemed to have agreed to arbitrate in accordance with these Rules whenever they have provided for arbitration by the Arbitration Commission. If the parties have agreed to the application of a different procedure or a different set of arbitration rules and the Arbitration Commission agreed thereafter, the parties’ agreement shall prevail.
Chapter 2 Application and Acceptance
Article 9 The Claimant applying for arbitration under these Rules shall meet the following requirements:
(1) the arbitration agreement submitted to the Arbitration Commission for arbitration;
(2) a specific Respondent;
(3) the Claimant's claim and the facts and reasons on which his claim are based;
(4) within the Arbitration Commission's cognizance.
Article 10 When applying for arbitration, the Claimant shall submit the Statement of Claim and the following documents :
(1) proof of the parties’ identity;
(2) a reference to the arbitration agreement that is invoked;
(3) relevant evidentiary materials;
(4) other materials required by the Arbitration Commission.
The Claimant shall submit respective number of copies of the Statement of Claim, the materials and documents listed in the preceding paragraph according to the number and composition of the arbitral tribunal and the number of the Respondents.
Article 11 The Statement of Claim shall include::
(1) basic information of the Claimant and the Respondent: when the parties are natural persons, the Statement of Claim should contain the name, sex, age, occupation, work unit , habitual residence and zip code, telephone number of the parties; when the parties are legal persons or any other organizations, the Statement of Claim should contain the name, address, and zip code, telephone number of the parties, as well as the name, position and contact information of the legal representative or the person-in-charge thereof;
(2) the claim of the Claimant and the facts and argument on which the claim is based;
(3) the Statement of Claim shall be signed by and/or affixed with the seal of the Claimant and/or its legal representative or person-in-charge.
Article 12 Within 3 days from the date of receiving the Statement of Claim, if the Arbitration Commission, after examination, deems that the Claimant has satisfied the Arbitration Commission's requirements of accepting cases, it shall serve the Claimant a Notice of Case Acceptance, a set of the Rules of the Arbitration Commission and the Panel of Arbitrators. The Claimant shall, within the time limit specified by the Arbitration Commission, pay the arbitration fee in advance. Fails to pay the fees for arbitration in due time shall be deemed to withdraw the arbitration application.
If the Arbitration Commission considers that the requirements of accepting cases have not been fulfilled while the Claimant insist application,it shall notify the Claimant in writing of its rejection accompanying its reasons thereof.
Article 13 The Arbitration Commission, within 10 days as from the date of accepting the case, shall serve the Respondent the Notice of Arbitration, as well as a copy of the Statement of Claim and its attachments, a copy of these Rules, and the Panel of Arbitrators.
Article 14 The Respondent shall file a Statement of Defence, as well as proof of the Respondents’ identity, within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration.
Article 15 The following shall be specified in the Statement of Defence:
(1) the basic information of the Respondent: if the parties are natural persons, the statement of defence should contain the name, sex, age, occupation, work unit , habitual residence and zip code, telephone number of the parties; if the parties are legal persons or any other organizations, the Statement of Defence should contain the name, address, zip code, telephone number of the parties, as well as the name, position and contact information of the legal representative or the person-in-charge of the legal persons or other organizations;
(2) the arguments of its defence and the facts and grounds on which the defence is based;
(3) the Statement of Defence shall be signed by and/or affixed with the seal of the Claimant and/or its legal representative or person-in-charge.
Article 16 Within 3 days of the receipt of the Statement of Defence and any other relevant materials, the Arbitration Commission shall serve a copy of the Statement of Defence and its attachments to the Claimant.
Failure by the Respondent to file, or in due time to file, a Statement of Defence shall not affect the conduct of the arbitration proceedings.
Article 17 An objection to an arbitration agreement and/or jurisdiction over an arbitration case shall be raised in writing before the first oral hearing is held by the arbitral tribunal. Where a case is to be decided on the basis of documents only, such objection shall be raised in writing before the expiry of the time limit for the submission of the first defence.
If a party has not raised any objections pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, it shall be deemed to have accepted that the arbitration agreement is valid and that the Arbitration Commission has jurisdiction over the case.
If a party objects to the validity of the arbitration agreement, he may request the Arbitration Commission to make a decision or apply to the people’s court for a ruling. If one party requests the Arbitration Commission to make a decision and the other party applies to the people’s court for a ruling, the people’s court shall render a ruling.
Any objection to the validity of an arbitration agreement and/or jurisdiction raised by the party (parties) may be decided by the Arbitration Commission or by the arbitral tribunal authorized by the Arbitration Commission with such power.
Article 18 The Respondent is entitled to file a counterclaim. The format, content and other requirements of the Statement of Counterclaim are the same as the Statement of Claim.
The Respondent shall submit the Statement of Counterclaim to the Arbitration Commission before the commencement of the first hearing of the arbitration tribunal. If the Statement of Counterclaim is not submitted within the stipulated period of time, the Arbitration Commission shall consult the arbitral tribunal views before it decide whether to accept the Statement of Counterclaim or not.
Within 3 days from the date of receiving the counterclaim, if the Arbitration Commission, after examination, deems that the Respondent has satisfied all the requirements of accepting cases, it shall send to the respondent a Notice of Case Acceptance. The Respondent shall, within the time limit specified by the Arbitration Commission, pay the arbitration fee in advance. Fails to pay the fees for arbitration in due time shall be deemed to withdraw the counterclaim.
Within 15 days of the receipt of the Notice of Application for Counterclaim, the Claimant shall submit the Statement of Defence to the counterclaim; failure by the Claimant to file a Statement of Defence to the Respondent's counterclaim shall not affect the proceedings of the arbitration. The format, content and other requirements of the Statement of Defence to the counterclaim are the same as the Statement of Defence.
The arbitral tribunal may consolidate the original Statement of Claim and the following counterclaim into a single arbitration proceeding. The arbitral tribunal may, when it deems it necessary, render separate awards on the original Statement of Claim and the following counterclaim.
Article 19 The Claimant is entitled to withdraw the Statement of Claim, and the Respondent is entitled to withdraw the Statement of Counterclaim. The withdrawal of the Statement of Claim or the Statement of Counterclaim shall be decided by the Arbitration Commission; the arbitration fees and costs shall be decided by the Arbitration Commission according to the applicable provisions.
If the parties fall back on their words after the withdrawal of the Statement of Claim or the Counterclaim, they are entitled to re-file for arbitration.
Article 20 Any party may apply for preservation of property if the other party's acts or other circumstances may render the arbitration award impossible or difficult to enforce.
If any party applies for preservation, the Arbitration Commission shall, without undue delay, submit the application for preservation to a competent court in accordance with relevant stipulations.
Article 21 The parties may appoint agent(s) to handle matters relating to the arbitration. In the event that an agent is appointed to handle the arbitration matters,a Power of Attorney and the proof of identity of the agent shall be forwarded to the Arbitration Commission. The Power of Attorney shall specify the matters and scope of the authorization.
The entrusted agent of the party shall not be more than 2 people in general.
If the party (parties) modify the scope of authority or terminate the agent's authorized matters, a written notice shall be submitted to the Arbitration Commission. Without written notice, the original agent’s act of agency shall continue to be effective.
Article 22 Any party may apply to amend its claim, defence or counterclaim in writing before commencement of arbitral hearing.
The application of amendment of the Statement of Claim shall be decided by the arbitral tribunal, or,if the arbitral tribunal has not been constituted, by the Arbitration Commission.
After the Arbitration Commission accepts the application of amendment of the Statement of Claim, it shall server the amendment to the other party within 2 days. The other party shall submit the statement of defense within 15 days from the date of receiving the amendment of the Statement of Claim.
If there be one party applies to amend its claim in the oral hearing, and the other party makes defence or gives up defence thereafter in the oral hearing, the arbitral tribunal shall proceed with the arbitration.
Chapter 3 The Arbitral Tribunal
Article 23 The arbitral tribunal shall be composed of three or one arbitrator(s). If an arbitral tribunal comprises three arbitrators, a presiding arbitrator shall be appointed.
The parties shall appoint arbitrators from the Panel of Arbitrators provided by the Arbitration Commission.
Article 24 In the case of arbitral tribunal of three arbitrators agreed upon by the parties,within 15 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the Claimant and the Respondent shall each appoint, or entrust the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to appoint, an arbitrator . The Claimant and the Respondent shall jointly appoint or jointly entrust the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to appoint the presiding arbitrator
In the case of arbitral tribunal of one arbitrator agreed upon by the parties, the Claimant and the Respondent shall, within 15 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, jointly appoint or jointly entrust the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to appoint the arbitrator.
If the parties fail,within the time limit prescribed in the preceding paragraphs,to appoint or entrust the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to appoint the arbitrator(s),the arbitrator(s) shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission.
Article 25 If one of the parties comprises two or more persons, they should jointly appoint or jointly entrust the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to appoint the arbitrator;If, within the prescribed time limit, they failed to reach a consensus, the arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman.
Article 26 If the party- nominated arbitrator lives outside Heilongjiang, the party shall bear the arbitrator’s increased travel expense incurred necessarily by hearing the case. If the party does not pay in advance the travel expense within the period stipulated by the Arbitration Commission, it shall be deemed not to have appointed the arbitrator. The Chairman could appoint the arbitrator for the party in accordance with these Rules.
Article 27 After the composition of the arbitral tribunal, the Arbitration Commission shall appoint one or two arbitration secretary in charge of case recording, service of documents and other arbitration proceedings.
Article 28 Within 5 days after the composition of the arbitral tribunal, the Arbitration Commission shall notify the parties in writing of the composition, and serve the relevant case materials to the arbitral tribunal.
Article 29 After receiving the notification of the composition of the arbitral tribunal, the arbitrator shall report to the Arbitration Commission and voluntarily request a withdrawal once there are situations that listed in Article 34 of the Arbitration Act or any other situation that for his/her to withdraw the case.
Article 30 If an arbitrator is aware of circumstances beyond those stipulated in Article 29 of these Rules, which might affect his/her independence or impartiality, the arbitrator shall disclose those circumstances in writing to the Arbitration Commission.
A party wishing to challenge the arbitrator shall forward the challenge in writing within 5 days from the date of receipt of the arbitrator’s disclosure. Failing to file a challenge within the above time period, the party may not subsequently challenge the arbitrator on the grounds of the information disclosed by the arbitrator.
Article 31 The parties have the right to challenge if they believe that the arbitrator shall withdraw from his/her office. A challenge shall be raised in writing before the commencement of the first hearing.
A challenge based on circumstances known after the commencement of the first hearing can be raised in writing prior to the close of the final hearing; if a party has not raised the challenge in writing, it shall be deemed not to challenge the arbitrator.
A challenge shall be accompanied by grounds of the challenge and supporting evidence.
Article 32 Whether an arbitrator is withdrawn or not shall be determined by the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission. If the Chairman is serving as an arbitrator,the withdrawal or not shall be determined collectively by the Arbitration Commission.
Article 33 If an arbitrator is unable to perform his /her normal functions, which may affect the case hearing, both the arbitrator himself/herself and/or the parties may request the replacement.
Whether an arbitrator is replaced or not shall be determined by the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission. If the Chairman is serving as an arbitrator, the withdrawal or not shall be determined collectively by the Arbitration Commission.
The procedures and methods of re-appointing arbitrator shall be conformed to these Rules.
Article 35 The Arbitration Commission shall notify the parties in writing of the recomposition of the arbitral tribunal. If the recomposition of the arbitral tribunal is due to the withdrawal of an arbitrator,the arbitral tribunal shall consult with the parties before it determine whether the resumption of the proceedings may be allowed; If the recomposition of the arbitral tribunal is not due to the withdrawal of an arbitrator, the arbitral tribunal may determine on its own whether the arbitration proceedings shall be resumed.
Chapter 4 Evidence
Article 36 Each party shall bear the burden of proving the allegation(s) relied upon to support its case.
If a party bearing the burden of proof fails to produce evidence, or if the evidence produced is not sufficient to support its claim or counterclaim, it shall bear the consequences thereof.
Article 37 The parties shall produce evidential materials before the commencement of the first hearing. If the evidential materials are not produced before the first hearing, they shall be produced within the period prescribed by the arbitral tribunal. Except otherwise agreed by the parties, fails to produce evidence within the time limits shall be deemed as having abstained from the right of producing evidence.
If a party experiences difficulties in producing evidence within the specified time period, it may apply in writing for an extension before the end of the period. The arbitral tribunal shall decide whether or not to extend the time period.
Should either party fails to produce evidence within the time limits due to force majeure, the arbitral tribunal shall decide whether or not to accept or organize examination.
Article 38 The facts as mentioned below need not be proved by the parties concerned by producing evidence:
(1) the facts that the other party concedes;
(2) the facts that are well-known;
(3) the laws of nature and self-evident principles;
(4) the facts that can be induced according to legal provisions or known facts or the rule of experience of daily life;
(5) the facts affirmed by effective legal documents;
(6) the facts that have been proved by valid notary documents.
The facts as mentioned in items (1)(2)(4)(5)(6) of the preceding paragraph may be excluded if they are overthrown or can be overthrown by contrary evidences produced by the party(parties).
Article 39 The evidence produced by the parties include the statement of the parties, documentary evidence, material evidence, audiovisual materials, electronic data, testimony of witness, expert opinion, written record of inspection.
Documentary evidence and material evidence forwarded should be originals. In case it is difficult to forward the originals, copies, photos or extracts could be forwarded, with the prerequisite that the source of the aforesaid items should be attached.
When the documentary evidence is in a foreign language, the arbitral tribunal may, if necessary, require the parties to provide a notarized Chinese translation of the evidence.
Article 40 Each party shall produce the evidence with compiled catalogue and the evidence list, and properly categorize and compile the evidence with pagination , state briefly the source and what the evidence is sought to prove and the abstract, affix its signature and seal, and indicate the date on which the evidence is produced.
Article 41 Where the arbitral tribunal considers it necessary, it may undertake investigations and collect evidence on its own initiative .
When investigating and collecting evidence at site, the arbitral tribunal may notify the parties to be present. In the event that the parties fail to be present after being notified, the investigation and collection of evidence shall nevertheless proceed.
The evidence collected by the arbitral tribunal may be examined by the parties.
Article 42 The arbitral tribunal may, when necessary, consult the expert advisory committee on difficult problems involved in the case. Expert opinions can be used for reference in the making of arbitral award.
Article 43 If, during the arbitration proceedings, the arbitral tribunal deems it necessary to inspect the material evidence and the evidence at site, it may organize an inquest. The arbitral tribunal shall promptly notify the parties concerned about the inquest. In the event that the parties fail to be present after being notified, the inquest shall nevertheless proceed. The procedures of inquest should be consistent with the industry standard.
The arbitral tribunal shall make a written record of the inspection, with the signatures of inspectors, the parties and other participants.
Article 44 Any party may apply for evidence preservation if the evidence might be destroyed or if it would be difficult to obtain the evidence later afterwards.
If any party applies for such preservation, the Arbitration Commission shall submit the application to the basic people's court where the evidence is located.
Article 45 If any party requests an appraisal and the arbitral tribunal consents, or if the arbitral tribunal of its own motion considers it necessary, the arbitral tribunal may require the parties to jointly nominate an appraisal organization or appraisal expert within a period of time specified by the arbitral tribunal. If the parties fail to do so, the appraisal organization or appraisal expert shall be appointed by the arbitral tribunal.
The parties who apply for appraisal shall pay appraisal fees in advance. If both parties apply for appraisal, they shall each pay half of the appraisal fees. The arbitral tribunal may decide not to carry out the appraisal if the parties do not pay the appraisal fees in advance.
The“Appraisal”referred to in these Rules, is defined by the specialized agencies or specialized professionals on specific problems or issues, make identification, evaluation or judgment through audit, evaluation, testing and other technical means.
Article 46 The parties shall cooperate whenever the arbitral tribunal agrees to entrust appraisal. Refusing to provide required materials or refused to cooperate without legitimate reason which leads to failure of the appraisal or influences the expert conclusion, the respective party (parties) shall bear the legal consequences arising therefrom.
Article 47 A copy of the appraisal report shall be served by the arbitral tribunal to each party before the hearing. The parties may submit their written examinations on the report.
If the arbitral tribunal considers it necessary or if the parties so request, the Arbitral Tribunal shall notify the appraiser to attend the hearing. The parties may, with the permission of the Arbitral Tribunal, question the appraiser on relevant issues of the report.
Article 48 The evidence shall be produced at the hearing and shall be examined by the parties under the organization of the arbitral tribunal . Evidence not examined in the tribunal shall not be accepted as the basis of establishment of the facts.
If the evidence produced by the parties at the hearing is not accepted by the other party to be examined on the spot, the arbitral tribunal shall provide reasonable time for that other party to prepare the examination, and to submit rebuttal evidence. The arbitral tribunal may also request that other party to submit a written examination opinions within a specified time limit.
Article 49 Before rendering the final award, the arbitral tribunal may require the parties to supplement evidence with regard to the major facts which might seriously affect the results of the award.
Article 50 The arbitral tribunal shall evaluate the evidence after examination.
If a party has neither admitted nor denied facts alleged by the other party, and refuses to express clearly either admission or denial on those facts despite explanation and inquiry by the arbitral tribunal, it shall be deemed to have admitted those facts.
If a party has admitted to adverse facts or evidence, whether in the Statement of Claim, the Statement of Defence, its statements or other written opinions, those facts or evidence shall be deemed as confession and shall be confirmed by the arbitral tribunal, unless the party subsequently withdraws the admissions and produces evidence sufficient to rebut those facts or evidence.
If a party can prove that the other party possesses evidence that it refuses to disclose without justifiable reason, and that such evidence would have had an adverse impact on the case of the party possessing the evidence, adverse inferences may be drawn from such refusal to disclose.
Chapter 5 Hearing
Article 51 The arbitral tribunal shall hold oral hearings when examining the case. However, the arbitral tribunal may examine the case on the basis of documents if the parties so agree.
Article 52 Hearings shall be confidential. Where both parties request an open hearing, the arbitral tribunal shall make a decision.
Unless otherwise prescribed by any law, the parties and their representatives, the witnesses, the appraisers, the interpreters, the arbitrators, the experts consulted by the arbitral tribunal, and other relevant persons shall not disclose to any outsider any substantive or procedural matters relating to the case.
Article 53 Hearings shall be held at the Arbitration Commission premises, or at other locations that the Arbitration Commission decides according to principle of convenience and economic efficiency. The place of hearing shall be equipped with sound recording and video apparatus. If the parties agree otherwise or the parties jointly request and get the consent of the Arbitration Commission, such agreement shall prevail, but the parties shall bear the relevant expenses.
Article 54 In the two or more than two cases where one of the parties is the same, and if the subject matters are the same or belong to the same kind or relate closely to each other, and if the compositions of the arbitral tribunals are the same, those cases could be consolidated upon the parties’ agreement.
Article 55 If the Claimant, having been duly notified in writing of the hearing, fails to appear at the hearing without any justifiable reason or withdraws from an ongoing hearing without the permission of the arbitral tribunal, the Claimant shall be deemed to have withdrawn its arbitration application. Whereas the default hearing on the Respondent’s counterclaim shall not be affected.
If the Respondent, having been duly notified in writing of the hearing, fails to appear at the hearing without any justifiable reason or withdraws from an ongoing hearing without the permission of the arbitral tribunal, the arbitral tribunal may proceed with the default hearing. Upon such failure, the Respondent shall be deemed to have withdrawn its counterclaim if there is any.
Article 56 The arbitral tribunal shall notify the parties of the date of the first hearing at least 10 days before the hearing. The date may be brought forward with the agreement of the parties and the approval of the arbitral tribunal. A party may request a postponement of the date of the first hearing, it least 5 days before the hearing, if there are grounds justifying a postponement. The arbitral tribunal shall decide on the request.
Notification of the date of any hearing subsequent to the first one is not subject to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
Article 57 The arbitration tribunal shall announce the name list of members of the tribunal at the first hearing, and inquire the parties whether or not to apply for challenge of arbitrators. If the parties apply for challenge, the arbitral tribunal shall make it into the record of hearing and suspend the hearing. The arbitral tribunal shall submit the written challenge to the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission in due time.
During the hearing, the parties have the right to make statements and make clear their request for arbitration, produce evidence, examine the evidence and debate. At the conclusion of debate, the arbitral tribunal shall inquire the final statements of the parties.
Article 58 The arbitral tribunal shall make record of the hearing. The parties and other participants shall have the right to request a rectification of any error and omission in the minutes of their testimony within 3 working days after the hearing. The arbitral tribunal shall decide whether to allow the rectification or not. The request shall be recorded if the arbitral tribunal does not allow the rectification.
The arbitral tribunal, the recorder, the parties, and other participants in the arbitration shall have their names signed on the minutes.
Article 59 After the submission of the Statement of Claim,the parties may settle the dispute among themselves through conciliation or ask the Arbitration Commission for mediation before the composition of the arbitral tribunal. If a dispute settlement or a conciliation agreement has been reached,the parties may apply to the arbitral tribunal for a statement of mediation or an award based on the dispute settlement or the conciliation agreement. They may also withdraw the arbitration application.
If the parties reached a conciliation agreement and a party has withdrawn the arbitration application or counterclaim, and if the other party fall back on their words, the application may be made for arbitration in accordance with the arbitration agreement.
Article 60 Before the composition of the arbitral tribunal, if the parties ask the Arbitration Commission for mediation, the Arbitration Commission may designate personnel for a out-of-court settlement.
The arbitral tribunal can be hosted by one arbitrator for mediation. If mediation is unsuccessful,an award shall be made in due tiome.
Article 61 If one party applies for an outsider to participate in the mediation, and the other party and the outsider agreed, the arbitral tribunal may notify the outsider to participate in mediation. It shall be permitted if the outsider agree to assume the civil liability, with the exception of infringement of state interests or public interests.
Article 62 Neither party shall invoke any of the statements, opinions, views or proposals expressed by the parties or the arbitrators during the mediation as grounds in the subsequent arbitral proceedings, judicial proceedings or any other proceedings. Those statements, opinions, views or proposals shall not be served as the basis of making the award by the arbitral tribunal.
Article 63 If the mediation leads to a settlement, the parties may withdraw their claims and counterclaims if any, or request the arbitral tribunal to issue a mediation statement or make an award in accordance with the terms of the settlement.
Article 64 A mediation statement shall set forth the basic information of the parties concerned, the arbitration claims and the agreement between the parties.
The mediation statement shall be signed by the arbitrators, sealed by the arbitration commission, and served on both parties. A mediation statement shall have legal effect once received and signed by the parties.
A mediation statement shall have the same legal effect as that of an award.
Article 65 In the case of involving a third party, if that third party take the initiative to apply for participating in the arbitration, and the parties agree, which can be deemed as the formation of a new arbitration agreement, the arbitral tribunal shall allow that third party to participate in the arbitration proceedings.
If one party requests the third party to participate in the arbitration proceedings, and the remaining parties agree, the arbitral tribunal may notify the third party to appear in court. If the third party so agrees, a new arbitration agreement shall be deemed to be established, and the arbitral tribunal shall permit the third party to participate. If third party does not agree, and the arbitral tribunal considers the absence of the third party has made the basic conditions of making an award insufficient, the arbitral tribunal may recommend the Claimant to withdraw the application; if the Claimant does not agree to withdraw , the arbitral tribunal may decide to reject the application for arbitration; in such a case, if one party or both parties claim to dissolve the arbitration agreement, the arbitral tribunal shall make a ruling to terminate the arbitration agreement.
Article 66 If the claim and counterclaim have been withdrawn in their entirety before making an award, the Arbitration Commission shall make a decision of dismissing the case.
Chapter 6: Arbitral Award
Article 67 The award of an arbitral tribunal composed of three arbitrators shall be made by a majority of the arbitrators. The opinion of the minority arbitrators shall be recorded in writing. If the arbitral tribunal fails to reach a majority decision, the decision of the presiding arbitrator shall prevail.
If the arbitral tribunal is composed of one arbitrator, the award is made directly by the arbitrator.
Article 68 During the course of arbitration,where a part of facts has been made clear, a partial award may first be given in relation to that part.
Article 69 The arbitral tribunal shall have the power to order in its award, at the request of the winning party, that the losing party bears the cost and expenses reasonably incurred by the winning party in the arbitration.
The arbitral tribunal shall have the power to fix in its award the costs of the arbitration to be borne by the parties. The costs of the arbitration shall be borne by the losing party. But the arbitral tribunal may, according to each party’s responsibilities and the final ruling to determine the proportion of each party’s share of the costs.
Article 70 The arbitral tribunal shall render its award within 4 months from the date on which the arbitral tribunal is constituted. If there are special circumstances justifying an extension, the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission may, at the request of the presiding arbitrator, approve a suitable extension of the time limit.
Such period does not include the suspension period and appraisal period during the arbitration procedure.
Article 71 The award shall state the basic information of the parties concerned, the claims, the facts of the dispute, the reasons upon which the award is based, the decision on the claims/counterclaims, the time limit for performance, the allocation of the costs of the arbitration, and the date of the award. The award need not state the factual background to the dispute or the reasons upon which the award is based if the parties so agree, or if the award is made in accordance with the terms of a settlement between the parties.
The award shall be signed by each member of the arbitral tribunal and sealed by the Arbitration Commission. The arbitrator who has a dissenting opinion may choose to sign or not to sign his/her name on the award.
Article 72 The award shall come into legal effect as of the date it is made.
The parties shall automatically carry out the arbitral award within the time period specified in the award. Where one party fails to carry out the award, the other party may apply to a competent court for enforcement of the award in accordance with the law.
After the award is made, the Arbitration Commission shall not accept the re-application of the suit concerning the same dispute by any of the parties concerned.
Article 73 The arbitral tribunal shall, on its own initiative, make rectification in its award of any clerical or typographical error, any error in computation, and any omission from its decision of claims on which it has made a judgment in its reasoning.
Any party may, on discovering the existence of any of the circumstances stipulated in the preceding paragraph, request in writing within 30 days from the date of receipt of the award that the arbitral tribunal rectify the award.
Any rectification award of the arbitral tribunal shall be an integral part of the original arbitral award.
Chapter 7: Summary Procedure
Article 74 The Summary Procedure applies to the following cases:
(1) unless otherwise agreed by the parties to apply the General Procedure or in the event of difficult or complex case that the Arbitration Commission shall apply the General Procedure, the Summary Procedure shall apply if the amount in dispute does not exceed RMB 500,000;
(2) the parties may agree to apply the Summary Procedure even if the amount in dispute exceeds RMB 500,000;
(3) the application of the Summary Procedure in this chapter can be applied as a result of any amendments to the application for arbitration or the submission of a counterclaim, the amount in dispute exceeding RMB 500,000, unless unanimously agreed by the parties or by the Arbitration Commission that it is not applicable to the provisions of this chapter;
(4) the Summary Procedure can be applied to the case , where the General Procedure is originally applicable, one of the parties withdraws the arbitration application or the counterclaim and the amount of the arbitration claim or the counterclaim not been withdrawn is less than 500,000 RMB;
(5)where no monetary claim is specified or the amount in dispute is not clear, the Arbitration Commission shall determine whether or not to apply the Summary Procedure after a full consideration of relevant factors, including but not limited to the complexity of the case , social impact and the parties’ stakes involved.
Article 75 In the event of a change from the Summary Procedure to the General Procedure or from the General Procedure to the Summary Procedure, the parties shall, within 7 days of the receipt of notice of change of procedure, nominate arbitrators in accordance with the provisions of these Rules.
The re-constituted arbitral tribunal shall decide whether or not to repeat the arbitral proceedings conducted prior to the re-constitution.
Article 76 Upon acceptance of an arbitration application, the Arbitration Commission shall serve the Notification of Acceptance, the Notice of Arbitration, a copy of the Arbitration Rules and the Panel of Arbitrators to the Claimant, and serve a copy of the Statement of Claim and its attachments to the Respondent.
Article 77 Within 7 days of the receipt of the copy of the Statement of CLaim, the Respondent shall submit to the Arbitration Commission its Statement of Defence and any relevant supporting documents. A counterclaim, if any, shall also be submitted within the same period of time, together with any relevant supporting documents. After the expriation of the time limit, the Arbitration Commission shall consult the arbitral tribunal views before it decide whether to accept the counterclaim or not.
Article 78 Cases applying the Summary Procedure shall be heard by a sole arbitrator.
Within 7 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the parties shall jointly nominate or jointly entrust the Chairman to appoint a sole arbitrator. If the parties fail to do so within the specified period of time, the Chairman shall make the appointment immediately.
After the arbitral tribunal is constituted, the Arbitration Commission shall notify the parties in writing of the composition of the arbitral tribunal.
Article 79 The arbitral tribunal shall serve the Notice of Hearing to the parties at least 5 days before the hearing.
A party may request a postponement of the date of the first hearing at least 3 days before the hearing, if there are grounds justifying a postponement. The arbitral tribunal shall decide on the request.
Notification of the date of any hearing subsequent to the first one is not subject to the provision of paragraph 1 of this article.
Article 80 The sole arbitrator shall have the right to hear the case according to the way he/she considers appropriate. The court investigation, examination, debate, and mediation can be crossed.
Article 81 In the event that the case is to be found complicated and it would be necessary to transfer it to the General Procedure, the arbitral tribunal shall submit for approval of the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission to transfer it to General Procedure.
Article 82 The arbitral tribunal shall render its award within 2 months from the date of its constitution. If there are special circumstances justifying an extension, the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission, at the request of the sole arbitrator, may approve a suitable extension of the time limit.
Article 83 For matters not covered in this Chapter, the other relevant provisions of these Rules shall apply.
Chapter 8 Foreign-Related Arbitration Proceedings
Article 84 If one party or both parties are foreigners, stateless persons, foreign enterprises and organizations, the provisions of this chapter shall apply.
If one party or both parties are resident or legal person from HK SAR or Macao SAR or Taiwan, China, the arbitration case shall be handled by reference to the provisions of this chapter.
All the arbitration documents are required to provide the Chinese version. If there is controversy concerning the translation of Chinese version , it shall be decided by the arbitral tribunal.
Any dispute between the parties as to the existence of foreign-related elements shall be referred to the arbitral tribunal for a decision.
Article 85 The Respondent shall file the Statement of Defence and the following documents within 45 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration:
(1) documents relating to registration and nationality, among others, to prove the Respondent’s identity;
(2) evidential materials related to the Respondent’s Statement of Defence;
(3) documents in support of the Respondent’s Statement of Defence.
Failure by the Respondent to file a Statement of Defence shall not affect the conduct of the arbitration proceedings.
Article 86 The Respondent shall file the Statement of Counterclaim to the Arbitration Commission within 45 days from the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration.
The Claimant shall file the Statement of Defence to the counterclaim within 45 days of the receipt of the Notice of application for Counterclaim; failure by the Claimant to file a Statement of Defence to the Respondent's counterclaim shall not affect the proceedings of the arbitration.
Article 87 The parties shall nominate their respective arbitrators within 20 days from the date of receiving the Notice of Arbitration.
Article 88 The arbitral tribunal shall notify the parties of the date of the first hearing at least 30 days before the first hearing. A party may request a postponement of the date of the first hearing at least 10 days before the hearing, if there are grounds justifying a postponement. The arbitral tribunal shall decide on the request.
Article89 The arbitral tribunal shall render an arbitral award within 6 months as from the date on which the arbitral tribunal is constituted.
When there are specific reasons for extension of the 6-month time limit, the presiding arbitrator or the sole arbitrator may make a request. The Arbitration Commission may extend the 6-month time limit if the Chairman of the Arbitration Commission deems that the reasons for extension are justified.
Article 90 If the party of foreign-related arbitration object to the effectiveness of the arbitration agreement, the Arbitration Commission shall make the decision according to the parties-chosen applicable law .If the parties do not choose the applicable law, the Arbitration Commission shall apply Chinese law based on the principle of most significant relationship.
Article 91 The arbitral tribunal of the foreign-related arbitration shall apply the substantive rules of law agreed upon by the parties to the merits of the dispute.
In the absence of an agreed choice of law, the arbitral tribunal shall apply the international treaties, international usages, or one or several national laws, or Chinese law that the arbitral tribunal considers appropriate on the basis of the doctrine of most significant relationship.
Article 92 For matters not covered in this Chapter, the other relevant provisions of these Rules shall apply.
Chapter 9 Miscellaneous
Article 93 The Chinese language is the working language of the Arbitration Commission and the arbitral tribunal. If the parties have agreed otherwise and the Arbitration Commission agreed, the agreement of the parties shall prevail.
If translation services are required, interpreter(s) can be jointly decided by the parties. Interpreter(s) may be provided by the Arbitration Commission with the parties bearing the cost of translation.
Article 94 The prescription of arbitration stipulated by relevant laws shall be applied. In case there is no arbitration prescription stipulated by relevant laws, the prescription of action shall be applied.
Article 95 The terms of “within”, ”more than”, ”less than” in these Rules shall be inclusive, whilst the terms of “exceed” and “before” shall be exclusive.
Once the time duration of arbitration period calculated by day and month, the day from which a time period commences shall not be counted,and the day following the date of commencement is the first day as within the time period.
In case the last day of the expiration period is a statutory holiday, the first day after the holiday shall be regarded as the expiration date. The expiration date is regarded as the dead line for the work.
Time for delivery shall not be included in the caculation of time. Any arbitral document, notice or material that has been mailed or dispatched prior to the expiration date shall not be regarded as overdue.
Article 96 The arbitral documents, notices and other materials may be served on the parties or their authorized representatives by mail, courier, telex, facsimile and announcement.
The Arbitration Commission or the arbitral tribunal may deliver the arbitration documents, notices and other materials to one of the parties by authoring the other party to do the job; otherwise, the documents shall be served by other means stipulated in these Rules.
In case the party refuses to accept the service of documents, the service shall be deemed successful.
Article 97 The parties shall provide confirmation of the place of delivery, and shall bear the legal responsibility of unsuccessful service due to his/her failure of such confirmation .
Any arbitration documents to a party shall be deemed to have been properly served to the party if they have been sent to the addressee's residence, place of business, or the residence, domicile, place of business, correspondence or other mailing address provided by the addressee, or , to the addressee's last known and proved-to-be residence , place of business or correspondence.
Article 98 In case of any conflict between these Rules and relevant laws, regulations or international usages, those relevant laws, regulations or international usages shall prevail.
The Arbitration Commission may formulate special rules based on these Rules whenever necessary. The special rules and these Rules shall be equally effective.
Article 99 These Rules shall be interpreted by the Harbin Arbitration Commission.
Article 100 These Rules shall be effective as from February 1, 2013.The Provisional Rules of Harbin Arbitration Commission revised on May 17, 2001, in the second meeting of the second session of the Harbin Arbitration Commission shall be annulled simultaneously.