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The People's Republic of China has experienced steady inbound and increased outbound flows of foreign direct investment in recent years. It has concluded a web of international investment agreements that includes 131 bilateral investment treatiesç110 of which are in forceças well as 21 other agreements with investment provisions. This treaty network reflects China's adoption and promotion of international standards relating to cross-border investment. This decade has seen China gradually becoming more engaged in the investor^State dispute settlement regime, either as a host State or as a home State. Distinctive legal issues can be identified in the arbitration claims in which China has been involved as the home State, albeit they remain disproportionately modest when compared to the country's significant outbound foreign direct investment. Against this background, this article details such distinctive legal issues by reference to the five known investor-State dispute settlement claims by Chinese investors, providing an overview of the legal hurdles facing Chinese investors when they make an arbitration claim under early Chinese bilateral investment treaties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wu Tingfang, also known as Ng Achoy and as Ng Choy, was the first Chinese who went abroad to pursue legal studies in 1874. He went on to qualify as an English barrister in 1877, thus becoming the first Chinese to achieve this distinction. Several books and many articles have been written about his amazing life as a barrister and diplomat, and various researchers have attributed his glowing successes in the newly formed Chinese Diplomatic Service to his legal training and experience in London. However, no systematic and comprehensive research on his experience as a law student in England has been done. Drawing on archival materials at Lincoln’s Inn, Council of Legal Education, London School of Economics, and several other places, this article makes an effort to fill this gap by using newly discovered archival documents to trace the type of legal education he received, to look at his rich social activities, and to note the many people he associated with during over two and half years of studies in England. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As promised, China brought aWorldTrade Organization (WTO) dispute against the USA and the European Union (EU) respectively regarding their anti-dumping laws, which continue to authorize the application of the so-called non-market economy (NME) methodology. This case was initiated one day after the expiry of paragraph 15(a)(ii) of China'sWTO Accession Protocol on 11 December 2016. Through a preliminary analysis of China's claims in the request for consultation with the EU, this article argues that the expiration of paragraph 15(a)(ii) has terminated the right ofWTO members to use surrogate prices or costs for price comparison in anti-dumping actions against China solely based on their national market economy criteria. The use of surrogate prices or costs must now comply with the relevant WTO rules applicable to all WTO members. On this basis, the challenged EU measure is likely to be foundWTO inconsistent. Towards this end,WTO members may continue to label China as a NME for political or other reasons under their national laws. However, whatever this label may entail, it no longer justifies the application of the NME methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines foreign bribery in China since the early 2000s and the State's legal and penal changes in response to this increasingly common form of transnational corruption. It argues that over the last fifteen years, Chinese authorities have shifted national anti-bribery policies from one of de facto corporate impunity to de jure zero tolerance. Multinational corporations engaging in foreign bribery in China today are no longer vulnerable only to the risk of investigation, prosecution, and punishment by foreign jurisdictions. Rather, foreign corporations are now faced with much tougher domestic law enforcement, which forms part of the State's wider crackdown on corruption in China. However, as our case studies reveal, while the impact of zero tolerance strategies in curbing corporate offending is debatable, applying strategies of 'harsh justice'may ultimately be counterproductive to social stability and crime control. Although draconian, zero-tolerance strategies may appeal to politics of punitive populism, the authors contend that alternative strategies based on diversionary justice, such as deferred prosecution agreements and/or negotiated settlements, can more effectively realize the aims of prevention, restitution, rehabilitation and reform. Drawing valuable lessons from the US and UK experiences, China has the potential to devise its own reconciliation scheme, tailored to local concerns and culture and balancing legal accountability, cost-efficiency and social stability, especially in relation to the limiting potential adverse economic harms flowing from prosecuting multinational corporations for foreign bribery in China. Balancing the 'payoffs' and 'pitfalls' of negotiated justice, this article concludes that trialing diversionary measures is likely to appeal to affected stakeholders, including regulatory agencies, law enforcement and judicial authorities, corporate and business sectors and the wider community, which are seeking to end to cultures of impunity for corporate corruption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is among the world's largest producers of apples. It has a potentially large export market around the world. However, differences in food safety standardsçfor example, concerning pesticide residuesçoften pose serious challenges to Chinese exporters. Focusing mainly on Chinese exports of fresh apples to the European Union (EU), this article analyses these opportunities, related legal obstacles and the increasingly successful strategies, both domestic and international, used by the Chinese government to meet those challenges associated with them. It considers the gradual alignment of Chinese standards with international standards, the Chinese export strategy based on government support for selected elite export companies, and the conclusion by the Chinese government of new bilateral agreements to open major new markets for Chinese businesses. In doing so, it traces interconnections between: international, EU and Chinese food safety standards; China's post-World Trade Organization succession international trade strategies; the modernization of Chinese agriculture; relations between public and private standards; the 16 þ 1 arrangement between China and the Central and Eastern European countries including Member States of the EU; China's One Belt, One Road initiative and the development of a China-centred global food economy for apples. The result is an unusual form of regulatory collaboration between China and the EU. These factors are among the main drivers of transnational legal and economic relations in the international food trade today. They represent an emerging world food trade order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the constitutional relation between Mainland China and the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong from a comparative legal cultural point of view. The recent controversy surrounding the Hong Kong Legislative Council members’ oath taking serves as a starting point for the analysis in this article. The discussion focuses on the Hong Kong Basic Law, which is conceived as an interface of the underlying meta-doctrine of 'One Country,Two Systems'. The main argument is that the relation between Mainland China and Hong Kong is best understood as an uneven constitutional equilibrium. The underlying assumption is that the Hong Kong Basic Law is a constitutional interface where the contrasting legal cultural forces meet-that is, it is the place where the civil law type socialist legal system confronts the common law tradition. The article concludes by underlining the importance of path dependence in an attempt to understand and analyse the complicated constitutional balance that exists between the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines shareholder participation in the corporate reorganization process in China, in general, and in the debtor-in-possession scheme, in particular, and compares China's model to the model employed in the USA. The ostensible legislative objectives of the Chinese reorganization reflect overall the aversion of the Chinese public towards risk taking and (failed) entrepreneurship and empathy towards creditors. However, the actual provisions themselves do not accord with these objectives. Under the Chinese regime, shareholders are afforded the same level of power as creditors in initiating proceedings and voting on the plan. Furthermore, the Chinese debtor-in-possession scheme is subject to the discretion of the judiciary to a greater extent than in the US model. Further, the adoption of an administration process has the effect of making it a judicially managed debtor-in-possession scheme. This article provides an analysis that accounts for this divergence from the stated legislative objectives because the various levels of the Chinese government are typically the major shareholders involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investor-State arbitration (ISA) is now a hot topic in China and among its trade and investment partners. The number of ISA cases is still small, and doubts are still widespread at the policy-making level and among scholars. In particular, the drafting and practice of China's ISA clauses is not flawless in supporting investors in ISA or in defending their national interests as a host country. This article aims to review the main aspects of China's approach in drafting ISA clauses in the context of the One Belt, One Road Initiative (OBORI). It reviews ISA clauses in bilateral investment treaties and other international investment agreements between China and the One Belt and One Road (OBOR) region countries and discusses the relevant legal issues and controversies. Issues covered include: different generations of ISA clauses, the scope of arbitrable disputes, applicable law, the choice of arbitration institutions, procedural arrangements, the enforcement of arbitral awards, the impact of transition clauses, and so on. Based on the review and analysis of these issues, divergence is identified in the currently existing ISA clauses between China and the OBOR regions, although some degree of policy convergence can be found in a few of the most recent international investment agreements. It is both a challenge and an opportunity for China to learn from its previous experience with ISA clauses and to integrate its treaty-making approach in the context of the OBORI. A more adaptable Model ISA clause and a more consistent approach to the drafting of ISA clauses would benefit both China and its trade and investment partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea of a consolidated, unique registry for all types of movable securities at the national level has recently surfaced in Chinese academia and policy-making circles. This would align China with the global trend towards the adoption of national, unique registries, a solution in conformity with the one proposed in the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law's Model Law on Secured Transactions, issued in 2016. In Europe, the consolidated national registry was embraced with varied degrees of enthusiasm. One country where it was successful is Romania, which adopted an original model: notice (simplified) registration, but with filings performed by a capillary system of operators and agents, under the supervision of the Ministry of Justice. This article introduces the Romanian national registry for movable securities in a functional comparative perspective, as a potential source of legal transplant for the Chinese legal market. Adaptation to local conditions requires that the place of operators and agents in the Romanian model be taken in China by the commercial banks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rule of law is commonly understood to incorporate several components that have been proposed as integral to the development and sustainability of a mature democracy: separation of powers; equality before, and supremacy of, the law; equitable participation in decision making through personal freedoms; public promulgation of laws; transparency and legal certainty; and others. Yet it can often be construed as a Western hegemonic, even neo-colonial, globalized concept that has been exported to replace more traditional thoughts of good governance. This article examines the rule of law in Hong Kong that emerged from under British rule in 1997 with a deeply ingrained common law system founded upon Western concepts of the rule of law. Yet Hong Kong continues to exhibit in its governance elements of Confucian thought--jūunzĭ (gentleman), yi (justice), xin (integrity), and li (reason). For this reason, it serves as fertile ground for examining the extent of the impact of a globalized hegemony on local populations. I argue that Hong Kong continues to incorporate both systems of governance, exemplifying the persistence of a colonial form of power in the former colony and dependant territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2015 report attempts to present a picture of the development of comparative law scholarship in China in 2015 as demonstrated by notable articles, books, and other scholarly activities. Similar to previous annual reports, it first describes the general development of comparative law scholarship in China over the year through statistical analysis. Second, it examines the published articles in leading Chinese law journals to highlight relevant Chinese concerns and ideas on key issues of comparative law studies by Chinese comparatists. It then reviews other notable academic activities such as publications and exchanges in the field of comparative law. It concludes with some remarks on the achievements and shortcomings of comparative law scholarship in China in 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's renewable energy institutions are contributing to regulatory development, through the utilization of specialist expertise in the consultative drafting process. While the Chinese legislative system remains instrumentalist at the level of the unitary, centralized State, a significant degree of pluralism has developed in the specialized institutions supporting the legislative and executive branches of the government. Gu Xin's formulation of plural institutionalism is used as a framework for the analysis of the increasingly sophisticated and diverse institutions and inter-relationships involved. Interviews conducted in these institutions explore such pluralist regulatory development, through case studies of consultative drafting processes and institutional synergies. China's scale-up of renewable energy supports its environmental and climate change, energy security, and economic modernization objectives. This action reflects the Chinese government's scientific development concept and explains the involvement in the renewable energy consultative drafting process of a broad range of institutions. The view that the integration of heterodox views into the legislative process can enhance the scientific validity of outcomes also supports China's pluralistic institutional approach. Limits on pluralism include centralized decision making through the State planning process and regulatory requirements regarding the registration and supervision of institutions. Nonetheless, the participation of Chinese renewable energy institutions in the consultative drafting process reflects a continuing emphasis on the value of more independent institutions and on the utilization of specialist expertise in institutions under the National People's Congress and State Council. Thus, plural institutionalism is a key feature of the consultative drafting processes that have been central to renewable energy-related regulatory development in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legal developments in post-Mao China have been described by Randall Peerenboom as a 'long march toward rule of law', but Carl Minzner has suggested that there was a 'turn against law' in the first decade of this century. Was there a movement towards the rule of law in China since the era of 'reform and opening' began in the late 1970s, and, if so, has this movement continued in the last 15 years? This article begins with some methodological reflections regarding the proper approach to the study and evaluation of legal developments in contemporary China. It then reviews the trajectory of Chinese legal reform in the last 15 years and argues that there has not been a 'turn against law'. Finally, it explores the possibilities and limits of China's self-proclaimed project of 'ruling the country in accordance with law' and developing a 'socialist Rule of Law with Chinese characteristics'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2013, the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, announced an ambitious new agenda for Chinese foreign policy: the Silk Road Economic Belt. Heralded as a gift from China to the world, his envisioned program aims to resurrect the historical Silk Road, which linked East and West by land and sea. The historical Silk Road was built to facilitate trade, but it grew to have a distinct wider political and cultural impact. In this article, we argue that this political and cultural impact is currently being threatened by what we call the ‘Bamiyazation phenomenon’—an iconoclastic movement with transnational dimensions that particularly affects routes along the Silk Road. We contend that China should adopt a more holistic approach to the development of the twenty-first century Silk Road. To this end, we suggest that China should spearhead the defence and protection of the world’s cultural heritage through implementing and promoting a specified ‘crime against common cultural heritage’ in order to counteract the effects of the Bamiyazation phenomenon and to support the development of China’s new international identity as a power that, in Xi Jinping’s own words, ‘adopt[s] a right approach with some important principles.’ [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article investigates whether there is a convergent or divergent trajectory in modern constitutionalism. In the first theoretical part, it examines the arguments favouring cosmopolitanism and contrasts it with those that endorse autochthony or exceptionalism as an essential aspect of sound constitutionalism. Having explored this theoretical dimension, the article turns to China as a revealing case study for examining evolving constitutionalism. It focuses on three aspects—constitutions, judiciary, and international law—to examine constitutional changes in China to see if there is evidence of these divergent or convergent trajectories in constitutionalism. It concludes by noting the powerful influence of cosmopolitanism in China, how this influence is more significant in economic, financial, and commercial areas, and notes the continuing authority of the state in resisting such changes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Transitional economies have steadily become a very substantial portion of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) membership—comprising around two-thirds of new members since 1996—and a very large proportion of the States currently negotiating accession, but they have been subject to different and more onerous treatment than their fellow ‘non-transitional’ members. Increasingly, the differential treatment of transitional economies under the WTO regime is causing both generalized conflict and specific WTO disputes. This article argues that designations such as ‘transitional economy’ and ‘non-market economy’ are flawed in the binary approach that they establish in relation to the notion of the market. While they serve useful political objectives for some WTO members, they are unsatisfactory from a legal and theoretical perspective. In the longer term, this is an untenable position and one that should be reconsidered for the sake of transparency within the WTO framework. We conclude that the use of these dichotomies in the WTO context requires reconsideration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]