10 Complex Arbitration: (Articles 14, 18, and 19)

Subject(s):

Consolidation of claims — Joinder of cases and proceedings — Arbitration

This chapter studies complex arbitration, covering Articles 14, 18, and 19 of the CIETAC Rules. Under Article 14, the Claimant can initiate a single arbitration for disputes arising out of multiple contracts as long as the three requirements set out in Article 14 are met. Since the 2015 CIETAC Rules came into effect, Article 14 is frequently invoked in regard to disputes arising out of transactions such as international sales of goods, financial lease, and construction contracting and sub-contracting. Article 18 concerns the joinder of additional parties. Joinder refers to the situation where there is an arbitration pending under the CIETAC Rules and one or more additional parties are subsequently joined to the proceedings. Meanwhile, Article 19 deals with the consolidation of arbitrations, a procedure in which two or more pending arbitrations are merged into a single arbitration and handled by a single arbitral tribunal.