The Belt and Road Legal Supply & Dispute Resolution Seminar was held on June 10, 2017 at Yagu Resort. The seminar was jointly organized by Zhejiang University Guanghua Law School, China Legal Science under China Law Society and Hangzhou International Arbitration Court (HIAC). More than 80 experts and scholars from Zhejiang Higher People's Court, Zhejiang Academy of Commerce, Hangzhou Intermediate People’s Court, Hangzhou Municipal Committee of Commerce, Hangzhou Development Planning and System Reform Institute, Renmin University of China, Peking University, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Northwest University of Political Science and Law, Shandong University, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Oxford University, Zhejiang T&C Law Firm, Beijing King & Wood Mallesons Shanghai branch office, Beijing Dentons’ China Region(Hangzhou), Zhejiang Brighteous Law Firm, Zhejiang Wulian Law Firm, Zhejiang Youth Entrepreneurship Association, China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation Zhejiang Branch, Zhejiang Daily Press Group, Zhejiang Machinery & Equipment I/E Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Mechanical and Electrical Group, Hangzhou Iron & Steel Group Co., Ltd. participated in this seminar. Zhao Liang, Deputy Secretary General of HAC, Zhou Hongyu, Director of Development Division, and Ms. Li Xuanle, Vice President of HIAC, also attended the seminar.

The opening ceremony was chaired by Wang Chao, a researcher and Director of the International Legal Education Center from Zhejiang University. Wang Guiguo, a professor of Zhejiang University and President of HIAC, Zhang Xinbao, Professor of Renmin University of China Law School, Editor in Chief of China Legal Science, and Zhao Liang, Deputy Secretary General of Hangzhou Arbitration Commission (HAC), delivered their speeches respectively on the meeting.

The keynote speeches in the first section was chaired by Zhang Xinbao. Prof. Wang Guiguo gave a speech entitled "The Necessity of Making the Belt and Road Rules", stating that globalization was the future of international community. The Belt and Road initiative must be based on globalization and consistent with the order under globalization. China’s proposal of the Belt and Road initiative meant her participating in global governance. The binding force of rules has been on the increase in the world now. In his words, global governance was based on rules and rule-orientation has been the mainstream. The Belt and Road strategy would inevitably involve many issues in respect of goods, services, intellectual property rights, labor, and the environment, and it was necessary to make rules for the Belt and Road Initiative.

Shen Xiaoming, Principal of Court No.4 of Zhejiang Higher People's Court, Yu Sheng, Vice Principal of Court No.4 of Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court, and Zhao Jun, Vice Dean of Zhejiang University Guanghua Law School, gave remarks from the aspects of case study, the legal practice of cross-border e-commerce in Hangzhou, and the feasibility of the rule construction.

The second section was chaired by Professor Cheng Le from Zhejiang University. Zhang Naigen, Distinguished Professor of Fudan University and Director of the Center for International Law, made a speech entitled “The Belt and Road Initiative (Trade Facilitation Agreement) Implementation Issues”. The TFA was established by the WTO (World Trade Organization), and was the first and only new agreement under GATT, whose implementation was crucial to the recovery of the world economy after the financial crisis. The Belt and Road Initiative is a new plan proposed by China for international cooperation. International trades along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Eurasian Economic Union faced many problems and challenges, and TFA should be a way out. Prof. Zhang hoped that China could actively participate in international cooperation and acted as a coordinator in the cause.

Zhang Handong, Researcher and Dean of Zhejiang Academy of Commerce, made a speech entitled " Participation in the Belt and Road with Cross-border E-commerce Advantages ". He pointed out cross-border e-commerce was an important part for the Belt and Road Initiative, and would also be China's advantage to participate in global governance. But, at the same time, risk prevention rules for cross-border e-commerce should be established. Through cross-border e-commerce, the whole Province could see the future development of EWTP and open the online Silk Road as a key supplement to the Belt and Road Initiative.

Cui Haiyan, Managing Partner of Zhejiang Brighteous Law Firm, and Wang Weisong, Director of the Project Insurance Business Department of China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation Zhejiang Branch, gave their remarks as the negotiators from the perspective of lawyers' foreign legal services, international trade and investment enterprises legal risk prevention, etc.  .

The third section was chaired by Wang Chao from Zhejiang University. Prof. Qiang Li, Dean of Northwest University of Political Science and Law Economic Law School gave a speech entitled "Legal Issues of the Sino-foreign Cooperation Investment Fund of the Belt and Road Initiative", elaborating the significance of the Belt and Road Initiative for the financial sector from two aspects, i.e. deepening financial cooperation and strengthening financial supervision and cooperation. He also gave a briefing on the financial achievements at the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, the opportunities, status and legal issues of the Sino-foreign cooperation fund under the Belt and Road, and proposed his own countermeasures to improving the Sino-foreign cooperation fund project.

Prof. Shen Wei, Dean of Shandong University Law School, gave a speech entitled “Bilateral Investment Agreement between the Belt and Road and China”. From data analysis of China's foreign investment under the Belt and Road Initiative, investment protection and multilateralism, and international investment arbitration, etc, he gave an all-round analysis on how to reduce and overcome the investment barriers in the Belt and Road Initiative with his own solution.

Wang Lixin, Vice President of Hangzhou Lawyers Association and the Managing Partner of Zhejiang T&C Law Firm, made a speech entitled “Dispute Resolution between Investors and Host Governments”. From the perspective of legal service, his speech analyzed the main concerns in today’s foreign investmen from Chinese capital, claiming that it was necessary to clarify the scope of foreign investment by enforcing legislation. He also said that legal personnel must have a better understanding of international and foreign rules, and only as they truly understand the rules could they obtain the right to speak.

The fourth section was chaired by Ma Guang, Associate Professor and Deputy Director of the Asian Academy of International Law, Zhejiang University. Niu Jian, Deputy Director of the Hangzhou Development Planning and System Reform Institute, gave a speech entitled "Hangzhou's Participation in the International Rule of Law Construction under the Belt and Road Initiative". In his address, he believed that the construction of the Belt and Road dispute resolution mechanism was a long-term and systematic project. As the G20 Summit was over, Hangzhou has been on a faster track to meet international rules, to seek legal practices, and pursue the fairness and transparency in judicial process. The central government made Hangzhou as a stop under the Belt and Road strategic development plan, and made it a pilot city for cross-border e-commerce and service trade reform, which were all the foundation of the city’s Belt and Road strategic reform.

Mattrew Erie, Associate Professor at the Oriental Institute of Oxford University, gave a speech entitled “Critical Moment: ‘Law and Development’ in China”, introducing the legal process in China in accordance with the development of the times, and further proposing some issues of China in the field of international business and investment law.

Liu Hao, Associate Professor of Bei Hang University Law School, gave a speech entitled “The Challenge of Unmanned Air Traffic to the Current Aviation Convention”. He first compared the difference between the traditional and modern transportation, and then gave his point on weather the existing convention could solve the issue of air traffic. He said that China should adopt means like comparative law research, model law, modernization of the convention, and dispute resolution organizations and mechanisms establishment to solve this problem.

Finally, Prof. Zhu Xinli, Dean of Zhejiang University Guanghua Law School, expressed sincere gratitude to the guests and staff for their active participation in this seminar. In a closing speech, Prof. Wang Guiguo left a positive comment on the outcome of this seminar and expressed his expectation and imagination for Hangzhou’s active participation in the Belt and Road initiative. He also made a call for promoting the research and practice of Belt and Road legal system together with all from every walk of life.

(by Wei Ting, HIAC)