Suzhou Arbitration Commission is seeking to recruit foreign-related arbitrators to join its team of professional arbitrators. The recruitment is open to the public. The recruitment plan, subject to laws and regulations including the Arbitration Law of the People’s Republic of China and the Commission’s Arbitrator Administration Measures, aims to put into practice a series of decisions and proposals of the CPC Central Committee and the Jiangsu Provincial Government on foreign-related legal services; among them are the province’s Implementation Plan to Develop Pilot Zones for High Quality Foreign-Related Legal Services, and the Suzhou city’s Implementation Plan to Develop Demonstration Clusters for Foreign-Related Legal Services. The recruitment also aims to increase public trust of Arbitration, to grow the Commission internationally, to streamline the Commission’s arbitrator team, to improve the Commission’s service quality and efficiency in the processing and arbitration of foreign-related cases, and to support China’s high-quality development and high-standard opening-up. All newly recruited foreign-related arbitrators are required to serve the same term as the arbitrators of the 6th session of the Commission.

I. Eligibility

All individuals, Chinese or non-Chinese, who meet the Commission’s qualification requirements for foreign-related arbitrators, are eligible to apply.

II. Prerequisites

Applicants must meet the requirements set forth in Article 13 of the Arbitration Law of the People’s Republic of China and Article 3 in the Arbitrator Administration Measures of Suzhou Arbitration Commission. Applicants must also satisfy the following prerequisites.

1. Have a passion for arbitration. Be righteous, responsible and law-abiding. Free of disciplinary actions. Free of criminal convictions made by judicial authorities. Free of occupation-related administrative actions or punishment for professional misconduct. Not be included in any list of judgment defaulters.

    

2. Be in good health. Capable of serving required hours as a foreign-related arbitrator. Have good communication and writing skills. Capable of conducting orderly arbitration hearings. Be 65 years of age or under.

    

3. Possess expertise and experience in areas such as arbitration or litigation for international commercial disputes, global economics and trade, international investment, international projects, intellectual property rights, and admiralty and maritime matters.

    

4. Proficient in at least one foreign language, including English, and able to use it as a working language. Proficiency in office software and tools.

    

5. If the applicant is not from Mainland China, the applicant shall be an arbitrator of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, Macao Special Administrative Region of China or Taiwan Province of China or foreign arbitration institutions, or an arbitrator registered in arbitration institutions of Mainland China, or other persons who meet the requirements of the Arbitration Law of China.

    

6. Comply with the policies of the Commission, including its Bylaws, Arbitration Rules, and Arbitrator Administration Measures.

An applicant must provide written authorization from his/her employer if he/she is a public servant in China, an employee of a government organ (authority) subject to the Civil Servant Law of the People’s Republic of China, or an employee of a permanent office of an arbitration commission.

III. Recruitment Process

1. Application. Eligible applicants must complete the Foreign-Related Arbitrator Application Form of Suzhou Arbitration Commission and ensure that all information provided is true, accurate and complete. Applicants must send a paper copy of the application form and required supporting documents (see List of Required Application Documents below) to Suzhou Arbitration Commission, and an electronic copy of the application form (photo must be attached in the “photo” section) to 987646948@qq.com. Both paper and electronic versions of the documents must be submitted by September 20, 2024. The application form and a sample of employer’s authorization are available in the “Arbitration Related Files Download (仲裁文书下载)” section at http://www.szac.net.

    

2. Review. The Commission will review and evaluate each applicant on the basis of multiple factors, including the applicant’s basic profile, personal qualities and arbitration skills. Applicants demonstrating exceptional qualifications will be included in a list of candidates.

    

3. Recruitment. The list of candidates will be examined and finalized by the Commission in its plenary session. The final results will be submitted to the judicial administrative department and be made public. Each newly recruited arbitrator will receive a certificate of registration and be registered in the List of Arbitrators of the Six Session of Suzhou Arbitration Commission.

    

IV. Important Notes

1. The closing date for submitting applications is September 20, 2024. Please be advised that applications submitted after the specified closing date will not be accepted.

    

2. Academic publications, papers or examples of typical cases must include the title, journal name, volume number, or case file number.

    

    

3. Applicants who have previously served as a judge, presiding arbitrator or sole arbitrator must provide details of the cases in which they have participated, including the total number of cases (highlight the number of international cases), a description of each case, the number of awards or decisions they wrote, the arbitral institutions for which they have served, and the length of time they served as the judge or arbitrator.

    

4. The list of arbitrators published by the Commission shall be final. Any application by an applicant does not constitute the Commission’s possible approval of the application or its opinion that the applicant is qualified to be an arbitrator.

    

5. The Commission keeps strictly confidential all information provided by applicants. All information of unsuccessful applicants will be destroyed without notice.

V. Contact Information

Address: Suzhou Arbitration Commission, 334 Fenghuang Street, Gusu District, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China 215006 (江苏省苏州市姑苏区凤凰街334号 苏州仲裁委员会)

Contact (Attention): LU Jianjun (陆建军)

Office: +86 512 6522 9312

Email: 987646948@qq.com

Suzhou Arbitration Commission

August 30, 2024

List of Required Application Documents

1. The arbitrator application form;

2. Identification documents (ID card, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan travel permit, passport, etc.);

3. Degree certificate and graduation certificate (highest level of education);

4. Legal Professional Qualification Certificate of the People’s Republic of China;

5. Certificate of professional title in related fields;

6. Judge qualification certificate (indicating judge level); retirement certification; and

7. Academic certifications, award certificates or other proofs.

Documents 1, 2 and 3 are required. Documents 4, 5, 6 and 7 may only be submitted if required. Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and foreign applicants should submit their application materials in accordance with the above list.

Thank you for your attention and cooperation.