Here is the next installment in our China and ADR Design Series:
China’s Arbitration Institutions
Liu Zihe and Ren Zhong
In much of the world, arbitration is concentrated in a relatively small number of major institutions. China has 285 local arbitration centers. That difference is not simply a matter of scale. It reflects a distinctive approach to dispute-system design: government-supported institutional creation followed by increasing competition, differentiation, and movement toward organizational independence.
The growth has been extraordinary. In 1995, 11 Chinese arbitration centers handled 107 cases involving roughly RMB 300 million (approximately US$44.7 million). By 2025, the Ministry of Justice