Rulings Confirm Jurisdiction Of Sub-Commissions Following CIETAC Split

After the Shanghai and South China sub-commissions split from the China's arbitration institute CIETAC, there was uncertainty about the interpretation and validity of existing arbitration clauses referring to these sub-commissions. Two recent judgments now clarify that if an arbitration clause refers to the Shanghai or South China sub-commission, SHIAC or SCIA has jurisdiction instead of CIETAC. Where parties have a preference for CIETAC as the competent arbitration institute, we recommend exploring whether the existing arbitration clause that refers to the Shanghai or the South China sub-commission of CIETAC can be amended.

In 2013, the internal struggle within China's arbitration institute CIETAC resulted in a split off by the Shanghai sub-commission and the South China sub-commission in Shenzhen. The Shanghai sub-commission changed its name to Shanghai International Arbitration Centre (SHIAC), and the South China sub-commission to Shenzhen Centre of International