In an arbitration before the Hong Kong International Arbitration Center, the parties applied to the Beijing Financial Court for interim measures (known as property preservation in China).
In April 2023, the Beijing Financial Court accepted the application and ruled to seize, impound, and freeze the property in the name of the relevant parties up to a limit of USD 14,784,384.42. This case number is Beijing Financial Court (2022) Jing 74 Cai Bao 74.
The legal basis for this mechanism is the Arrangement Concerning Mutual Assistance in Court-ordered Interim Measures in Aid of Arbitral Proceedings by the Courts of the Mainland and of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (hereinafter the “Arrangement”, 关于内地与香港特别行政区法院就仲裁程序相互协助保全的安排) that came into force in October 2019.
According to the Arrangement, a party to an arbitration proceeding in Hong Kong may apply for interim measures before an arbitration award is rendered to an intermediate people’s court of the place of residence of respondent or the place where the property or evidence is situated..
According to a case report by the Beijing Financial Court on social media, this is the first time a mainland court has made such an award under the Arrangement.
In contrast, interim measures are not available in China if the parties are involved in arbitration proceedings in other countries and regions.
Cover Photo by Dan Freeman on Unsplash
Contributors: CJO Staff Contributors Team
