Jurisdictional Challenge In Original And Supplemental Agreements Under Chinese Law

Where the disputing parties choose arbitration as a method of dispute resolution, they shall reach an arbitration agreement in advance. However, although arbitration is subject to the agreement of the disputing parties, the parties may still have jurisdictional challenge over a specific dispute under some special circumstances. While there is various jurisdictional challenge, this article focuses on the jurisdiction disputes that may arise from the original and supplemental agreements, e.g. when the parties have an arbitration clause in the original agreement but there is no such consensus in the supplemental agreement, does the arbitration clause in the original agreement apply to the supplemental agreement? Where the arbitration clause in the original agreement differs from that in the supplemental agreement, which clause shall prevail? This article will discuss these issues based on real cases and further offer practical tips under Chinese law.