List of China's Cases on Recognition of Foreign Judgments
Last updated: August 21, 2022
The Case List was issued on July 16, 2019, and is updated annually.
We are endeavoring to collect all Chinese court decisions involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”), and foreign counterparts concerning the recognition and enforcement of Chinese judgments. The Case List is made available for our readers to build reasonable expectations on REFJ in China.
The Case List is continually updated with new reports. To date, we have collected 89 cases involving China and 24 foreign States and regions.
(For the List of China's Bilateral Treaties on Judicial Assistance in Civil and Commercial Matters (Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Included), please click here. Authoritative texts in Chinese and other languages are now available.）
For an overview of disposition of cases on recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments between China and treaty-jurisdictions (Italy, France, Turkey, Russia, etc.) and those between China and non-treaty-jurisdictions (USA, Germany, Singapore, South Korea, etc.), please see the tables below.
For information about bilateral judicial assistance treaties that China and 39 States have concluded, please see table 2 below.
For the detailed country(region) report about cases on recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments, please see the following charts.
Case information, comments, and suggestions are most welcome. Please feel free to contact Ms. Meng YU via e-mail at meng.yu@chinajusticeobserver.com.
1. America (USA) – China
To date, there are 21 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and the United States of America. More specifically:
- In China, there are 12 cases, among which, Chinese courts recognized US judgments in 6 cases, while refused to recognize US judgments in 4 cases.
- In the US, there are 9 cases, among which, the US courts recognized Chinese judgments in 6 cases, while refused to recognize Chinese judgments in 2 cases.
Have China and the US concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review US judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘US-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
2. Australia - China
To date, there are 6 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Australia. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court refused to recognize an Australian judgment.
- In Australia, there are 5 cases, among which, the Australian courts recognized Chinese judgments in 4 cases, while refused to recognize Chinese judgments in 1 case.
Have China and Australia concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Australian judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Australia-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
3. Belarus- China
To date, there are 2 court decisions involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”) between China and Belarus. More specifically:
- In China, there are two cases, where the Chinese court refused to recognize a Belarusian judgment in 2003, and recognized a Belarusian judgment in 2020.
Have China and Belarus concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Belarusian judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Belarus-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
4. British Virgin Islands (BVI) - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and the British Virgin Islands (BVI). More specifically:
- In the BVI, there is one case, where the BVI court recognized a Chinese judgment.
Have China and the BVI concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review the BVI judgments? Reciprocity.
For the case info, please see the list above.
5. Canada - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and Canada. More specifically:
- In Canada, there is one case, where the Canadian court recognized a Chinese judgment.
Have China and Canada concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Canadian judgments? Reciprocity.
For the case info, please see the list above.
6. Chad - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and Chad. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court refused to recognize a Chadian judgment.
Have China and Chad concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Chadian judgments? Reciprocity.
For the case info, please see the list above.
7. France - China
To date, there are 5 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and France. More specifically:
- In China, there are 5 cases, among which, Chinese courts recognized French judgments in 3 cases, while refused to recognize French judgments in 2 cases.
Have China and France concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review French judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘France-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
8. Germany - China
To date, there are 5 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Germany. More specifically:
- In China, there are 3 cases, among which, Chinese courts recognized German judgments in one case, while refused to recognize German judgments in 2 cases.
- In Germany, there are 2 cases, among which, German courts recognized a Chinese judgment in 2006, while refused to recognize a Chinese judgment in 2021.
Have China and Germany concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review German judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Germany-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
9. Israel - China
To date, there are 2 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Israel. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court refused to recognize an Israeli judgment.
- In Israel, there is one case, where the Israeli court recognized a Chinese judgment.
Have China and Israel concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Israeli judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Israel-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
10. Italy - China
To date, there are 5 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Italy. More specifically:
- In China, there are 5 cases, among which, Chinese courts recognized Italian judgments in 2 cases, while refused to recognize Italian judgments in 3 cases.
Have China and Italy concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Italian judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Italy-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
11. Japan - China
To date, there are 6 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Japan. More specifically:
- In China, there are 2 cases, where Chinese courts refused to recognize Japanese judgments.
- In Japan, there are 4 cases, where the Japanese courts recognized Chinese judgments in two cases, while refused to recognize Chinese judgments in two cases.
Have China and Japan concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Japanese judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Japan-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
12. Kenya- China
To date, there is one court decision involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”) between China and Kenya. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court granted the withdrawal of an application for recognition and enforcement of a Kenyan judgment.
Have China and Kenya concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Kenyan judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Kenya-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
13. Malaysia - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and Malaysia. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court refused to recognize a Malaysian judgment.
Have China and Malaysia concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Malaysian judgments? Reciprocity.
For the case info, please see the list above.
14. Myanmar- China
To date, there is one court decision involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”) between China and Myanmar. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court dismissed an application for recognition and enforcement of a Myanmar judgment.
Have China and Myanmar concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Myanmar judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Myanmar-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
15. Netherlands - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and the Netherlands. More specifically:
- In the Netherlands, there is one case, where the Dutch court recognized a Chinese judgment.
Have China and the Netherlands concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Dutch judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Netherlands-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
16. New Zealand- China
To date, there are 2 court decisions involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”) between China and New Zealand. More specifically:
- In New Zealand, there is one case, where a Chinese judgment was recognized and enforced in 2016.
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court refused to recognize a New Zealand judgment in 2019.
Have China and New Zealand concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review New Zealand judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘New Zealand-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
17. Poland - China
To date, there are 2 court decisions involving the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments (“REFJ”) between China and Poland. More specifically:
- In China, there are two cases, where the Chinese courts recognized Polish judgments.
Have China and Poland concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Polish judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Poland-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
18. Russia - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and Russia. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court recognized a Russian judgment.
Have China and Russia concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Russian judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Russia-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
19. Singapore - China
To date, there are 6 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Singapore. More specifically:
- In China, there are 5 cases, where Chinese courts recognized four Singaporean judgments, while refused to recognize a Singaporean judgment.
- In Singapore, there is one case, where the Singaporean court recognized Chinese judgments.
Have China and Singapore concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No, but the heads of the supreme courts in China and Singapore signed China-Singapore Memorandum of Guidance on Recognition and Enforcement of Money Judgments (Memorandum of Guidance).
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Singaporean judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Singapore-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
20. South Korea - China
To date, there are 10 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and South Korea. More specifically:
- In China, there are 8 cases, among which, the Chinese courts recognized South Korean judgments in 2 cases, while refused to recognize South Korean judgments in 5 cases.
- In South Korea, there are 2 cases, where Chinese judgments are recognized.
Have China and South Korea concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review South Korean judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘South Korea-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
21. Turkey - China
To date, there is one court decision involving the REFJ between China and Turkey. More specifically:
- In China, there is one case, where the Chinese court recognized a Turkish judgment.
Have China and Turkey concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Turkish judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For the case info, please see the list above.
22. UAE - China
To date, there are three court decisions involving the REFJ between China and the UAE. More specifically:
- In China, there are three cases, among which the Chinese courts recognized UAE judgments in two cases.
Have China and the UAE concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review UAE judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘UAE-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
23. UK - China
To date, there are 3 court decisions involving the REFJ between China and the UK. More specifically:
- In China, there are 2 cases, among which the Chinese courts refused to recognize a British judgment in 2005, while recognized a British judgment in 2022.
- In the UK, there is one case, where the British court recognized a Chinese judgment.
Have China and the UK concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? No.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review British judgments? Reciprocity.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘UK-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
24. Uzbekistan - China
To date, there are two court decisions involving the REFJ between China and Uzbekistan. More specifically:
- In China, there are two cases, where the Chinese courts refused to recognize Uzbekistani judgments.
Have China and Uzbekistan concluded any treaty concerning REFJ? Yes.
What is the prerequisite and basis for Chinese courts to review Uzbekistani judgments? The bilateral treaty.
For more information, see case analyses under the tag ‘Uzbekistan-China Judgments Recognition and Enforcement’.
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If you would like to discuss with us about the post, or share your views and suggestions, please contact Ms. Meng Yu (meng.yu@chinajusticeobserver.com). If you would like to acquire the full text of these decisions, please also contact Ms. Meng Yu.
If you need legal services for the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards in China, please contact Mr. Guodong Du (guodong.du@chinajusticeobserver.com ). Du and his team of experienced attorneys will be able to assist you.
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Contributors: Guodong Du 杜国栋 , Meng Yu 余萌
