Shijiazhuang Arbitration Commission Rules

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1. Purpose and Basis
      These Rules are formulated in accordance with the Arbitration Law of the People's Republic of China and the relevant provisions of other laws in order to ensure that civil and commercial disputes are impartially and efficiently arbitrated to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the parties.
Article 2. Structure and Duties
    (1)Shijiazhuang Arbitration Commission （the “SJZAC”）is an arbitration institution legally registered in Shijiazhuang, China for resolving contractual disputes and other disputes over rights and interests in property between natural persons, legal persons and other organizations of equal status：
    (2) The Chairman of the SJZAC (the "Chairman") shall perform the duties and obligations stipulated by the Arbitration Rules of the SJZAC (the "Rules"). With the authorization of the Chairman, the Secretary-General or a Deputy Secretary-General of the SJZAC, may perform the said duties and obligations.
    (3) The SJZAC may establish Working Organizations such as a secretariat, an arbitration court, a mediation center and an arbitration center，etc.(the“Working Organization”) to handle the day-to-day affairs of the SJZAC. A staff member shall be appointed as the secretary for each case and be responsible for the associated procedural management and services.
Article 3. Application of the Rules
     (1) The Rules uniformly apply to the SJZAC and its Working Organizations. The SJZAC may also formulate special arbitration rules in case of need, applicable to the relevant arbitration cases.
     (2) Where the parties have agreed to refer their dispute to the SJZAC or its Working Organizations for arbitration, the Rules shall apply.
     (3) Where the parties agree to refer their dispute to arbitration under the SJZAC’s special arbitration rules, the agreement shall prevail. However, if the dispute falls outside the scope of application of these special arbitration rules, the Rules shall apply.
    (4) Where the parties have agreements on certain arbitral procedural matters or on the applicable arbitration rules, those agreements shall prevail. However, if those agreements are not operative or are in conflict with the mandatory provisions of the law of the place of arbitration, it is deemed that the parties have agreed that the Rules are to be applied. Where the parties have agreed on the application of other arbitration rules, the SJZAC shall perform the relevant administrative duties.
    (5) Where matters are not expressly specified in the Rules , the SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal shall have authority to proceed with the arbitral proceedings in the manner it deems appropriate so as to promote the fair and efficient resolution of the dispute between the parties.
    (6) When applying the Rules, the SJZAC, the Arbitral Tribunal, the parties and their representatives shall abide by the principles of honesty, good faith, collaboration and proper resolution of disputes.
Article 4. Jurisdiction
    (1) SJZAC accepts cases involving contractual disputes and other disputes over rights and interests in property between natural persons, legal persons and other organizations of equal status.
    (2) The disputes referred to in the preceding paragraph include:
     (a) domestic disputes；
     (b) disputes related to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Macao Special Administrative Region and the Taiwan region;
     (c) international or foreign-related disputes.
Article 5. Confidentiality
     (1) An arbitration shall be conducted in camera. If the parties agree otherwise, the arbitration may be conducted in public except where state secrets are involved or where the Arbitral Tribunal considers it unsuitable to be made public.
     (2) Where an arbitration is conducted in camera, the parties, their representatives, witnesses, expert assistants, appraisers, translators and interpreters, arbitrators, arbitration secretaries and other relevant personnel shall not disclose to the public any information concerning the arbitration case, unless otherwise provided by law.
Article 6. Right to Object
    (1) Where any provision of the Rules or any term contained in the arbitration agreement has not been complied with, any party has the right to raise objections.
    (2) A party who knows or should have known that any provision of the Rules or any term contained in the arbitration agreement has not been complied with, and yet participates or continues participating in the arbitration without promptly raising in writing its objection to such non-compliance shall be deemed to have waived its right to object.
Article 7. Place of Arbitration
    (1) Where the parties have agreed on the place of arbitration, the parties’ agreement shall prevail. But where the agreement is not operative or is inconsistent with the mandatory provisions of the law at the place of arbitration as agreed upon between the parties, it shall be deemed that the parties have no agreement as to the place of arbitration.
    (2) Where the parties have not agreed on the place of arbitration or their agreement is ambiguous, the place of arbitration shall be the place where the SJZAC or its Working Organization is located. The SJZAC may also determine the place of arbitration to be another location, taking into consideration the circumstances of the case.

Chapter II Arbitration Agreement

Article 8. Definition and Form of Arbitration Agreements
    (1) An arbitration agreement is an agreement by the parties to submit any existing or future contractual disputes or other disputes over rights and interests in property to arbitration. An arbitration agreement may take the form of an arbitration clause provided in a contract and other written forms of agreement for arbitration.
    (2) An arbitration agreement shall be in written form, including but not limited to contractual instruments, letters and electronic data messages and other forms.
Article 9. Independence of Arbitration Agreement
    (1) An arbitration agreement shall be independent of and separate from the contract in which it is contained. The validity of an arbitration agreement shall not be affected by the non-effectiveness, revocation, modification, rescission, termination or invalidity of the contract in which it is contained.
    (2) Where the parties have reached an arbitration agreement in the course of entering into a contract, the validity of the arbitration agreement shall not be affected by the failure to conclude the contract.
Article 10. Determination of Validity of the Arbitration Agreement
    (1) Where the parties have agreed to refer their dispute to the SJZAC or its Working Organization for arbitration, they shall be deemed to have agreed to refer the dispute to the SJZAC. If the Working Organization agreed upon by the parties does not exist or has been cancelled, it will be deemed that the SJZAC has been chosen by the parties.
    (2) Where the parties agree to refer their dispute to arbitration under the Rules or the SJZAC's special arbitration rules without designating a specific arbitration institution, they shall be deemed to agree to refer their disputes to the SJZAC for arbitration.
    (3) Where a merger, separation, termination, cancellation, or deregistration occurs to the parties after the conclusion of an arbitration agreement by them, the arbitration agreement shall be valid and binding upon the successors of their rights and obligations, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties.
    (4) Where a party dies after after the conclusion of an arbitration agreement, the arbitration agreement shall be valid and binding upon the heirs of the rights and obligations relating to the matters subject to the arbitration, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties.
    (5)Where the credits and/or debts are transferred in whole or in part, the arbitration agreement shall be valid for the assignee, except as otherwise agreed upon by the parties, or where the assignee expressly opposes or was unaware of the existence of the separate arbitration agreement at the time when the credits and/or debts were transferred.
    (6) Where the parties have agreed generally that the matters for arbitration are contractual disputes or other disputes, the formation, validity, performance, modification, transference, termination, and liability for default, liability for contracting fault, and the interpretation of the contract, may be determined as matters for arbitration.
    (7) The arbitration clause in a contract shall apply to the disputes on the supplementary contract and the appendix of the contract, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties.
Article 11. Objections to the Arbitration Agreement or Jurisdiction
    (1) A party’s objection to the existence and validity of the arbitration agreement, or to the jurisdiction shall be raised in writing. Where an oral-hearing is to be held, such written objection shall be raised before the first hearing. Where a case is to be decided on the basis of documents only, such objection shall be raised in writing before the expiry of the time-limit for the submission of the first defense.
    (2) If no party has raised any objections pursuant to the provisions of Article11(1), it shall be deemed that the parties have acknowledged the existence and validity of the arbitration agreement, and the jurisdiction of the SJZAC.
    (3) Objections raised by a party over the arbitration agreement or the jurisdiction of the case do not affect the arbitral proceedings.
    (4) The SJZAC, or Arbitral Tribunal authorized by the SJZAC, shall have the power to decide on the issue of the arbitration agreement’s existence, its validity, and the jurisdiction over the arbitration case. The Arbitral Tribunal can issue its decision in the course of the arbitral proceeding or in an arbitral award.
    (5) In the event the SJZAC determines the arbitration agreement between the parties exists and is valid, and has already issued its decision, a new decision may nonetheless be made in the subsequent process if the Arbitral Tribunal ascertains contrary facts or evidence. The SJZAC may authorize the Arbitral Tribunal to make a decision after the hearing, if the prima facie evidence was not enough for a decision to be made.
    (6)If the SJZAC, or Arbitral Tribunal authorized by the SJZAC, determines that the arbitration agreement does not exist, is invalid or it has no jurisdiction, the case shall be dismissed.

Chapter III Request for Arbitration, Case Acceptance and Statement of Defense

Article 12. Request for Arbitration
    (1) A party requesting for arbitration(the “Claimant”) shall submit the following:
    (a) the arbitration agreement;
    (b) its request for arbitration (the “Request for Arbitration”) containing the following information:
     (i) the name, gender, date of birth, work unit, domicile, telephone, fax, email, and any other expedient means of contact of the parties; the name and domicile of the legal person or the unincorporated organization, and the name, gender, date of birth, position, domicile, telephone, fax, email, and any other expedient means of contact of its legal representative or its key person in charge;
     (ii) the claim, facts and grounds the claim relies on;
    (iii) the signature or seal of the Claimant;
    (c) evidence and other materials that the claim relies on;
    (d) documentary proof of the Claimant’s identity.
    (2) If the request for arbitration is not in conformity with the Article12(1), the request for arbitration shall be deemed not to have been submitted unless and until the request for arbitration is supplemented and corrected within a specific time period set forth by the SJZAC.
    (3) A party requesting for arbitration shall deposit the arbitration fee in advance, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the SJZAC Arbitration Fee Schedule. If there is no disputed amount or the amount of the dispute has not been determined or cannot be determined, the amount of deposit for arbitration fee shall be determined by the SJZAC taking into the consideration of the complexity of the case, the size of the interests involved and other relevant factors.
    (4) An application for deferment of the payment of the deposit can be made to the SJZAC in the event of hardship. The application for deferment of the payment of the deposit shall be in writing and state the reason for deferment of payment of the deposit and the schedule of making the payment. The deferment of the payment of the deposit shall be decided by the SJZAC.
    (5) Under any of the following circumstances, it shall be deemed that the request for arbitration has not been submitted; if the request for arbitration has been accepted, it shall be deemed that the request for arbitration has been withdrawn:
    (a) the arbitral fee is not deposited in accordance with the Rules and deferment application is not submitted, or the deferment application has not been approved by the SJZAC;
    (b) the arbitration fee was not deposited in accordance with the deferred amount or time limit as per the approval of the SJZAC.
Article 13. Case Acceptance
    (1) If it finds that the requirements for acceptance are met, the SJZAC shall accept the request for arbitration within 5 days after receipt of the deposit for arbitration fee. Within 5 days of the acceptance of the request for arbitration, the SJZAC shall send to the Claimant a Notice of Arbitration, a copy of the Rules and the SJZAC's Panel of Arbitrators. The SJZAC shall send to the respondent (the “Respondent”) a copy of the Request for Arbitration, and the attached evidence, as well as the Notice of Arbitration, a copy of the Rules, and the SJZAC's Panel of Arbitrators.
    (2) The arbitral proceedings shall commence on the date on which the SJZAC accepts the request for arbitration.
Article 14. Statement of Defense
    (1) Within 15 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the Respondent shall submit to the SJZAC the following documents,
    (a) its statement of defense(the “Statement of Defense”) containing the following information:
    (i) the name, gender, date of birth, work unit, domicile, telephone, fax, email, and any other expedient means of contact of the Respondent; the name and domicile of the legal person or the unincorporated organization, and the name, gender, date of birth, position, domicile, telephone, fax, email, and any other expedient means of contact of its legal representative or its key person in charge.
    (ii) the statement of defense, and the facts and grounds on which the statement of defense is based;
    (iii) Respondent’s signature or seal;
    (b) the evidence or other materials on which the statement of defense is based;
    (c) documentary proof of the Respondent’s identity.
    (2) Within 5 days of the receipt of the Statement of Defense, the SJZAC shall send a copy of the Statement of Defense and the attached evidence or other materials to the Claimant and other Respondents.
    (3) Failure by the Respondent to file the Statement of Defense shall not affect the conduct of the arbitral proceedings.
Article 15. Counterclaim
    (1) The Respondent shall file its counterclaim, if any, by submitting a written request for counterclaim (the “Counterclaim”) ,within 15 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration. If the Respondent fails to submit within the above time period, the Arbitral Tribunal, or, if the Arbitral Tribunal has not been formed, the SJZAC, shall decide whether or not to accept the Counterclaim.
    (2) The SJZAC, or the Arbitral Tribunal, when deciding whether to accept a counterclaim submitted after the expiration of the above time period, shall take into consideration the necessity of combining the claim and counterclaim, the length of the overdue time, the likelihood of unnecessary delay in the procedure, and other related factors.
    (3) Article 12 herein may be referred to in the case of requesting for counterclaim.
    (4) Within 5 days of accepting the counterclaim, the SJZAC shall send a Notice of Acceptance of Counterclaim to the Respondent, and shall send a Notice of Acceptance of Counterclaim, a copy of the Counterclaim and the attached evidence and other documents to the Claimant.
    (5) Within 15 days of the receipt of the Notice of Acceptance of Counterclaim, the Claimant shall, by reference to Article 14(1), submit the Statement of Defense against the Counterclaim, the evidence and other materials.
    (6) Issues concerning the counterclaim that is not stipulated under this Article shall be dealt by reference to articles relating to request for arbitration.
Article 16. Amendment to Claim or Counterclaim
    (1) A party may amend the claim or counterclaim, and the SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal has the authority to require the party to submit a written application of Amendment to the Claim or Counterclaim.
    (2) The SJZAC, or the Arbitral Tribunal may refuse to accept the application for Amendment to the Claim or Counterclaim, if the application is excessively delayed that the conduct of the arbitral proceedings would be affected, or under other circumstances that make the amendment unsuitable.
    (3) The other party shall submit the Statement of Defense against the Amendment to the Claim or Counterclaim, within 15 days of receiving the application. Failure of the party to submit Statement of Defense shall not affect conduct of arbitral proceedings.
Article 17. Joinder of Additional Parties
    (1) During the arbitral proceedings, a party may apply to join an addition party to the arbitration under the arbitration agreement that is invoked in the case. The additional party shall be joined as either Claimant or Respondent.
    (2) The party who makes the request for joinder shall submit an application and evidence and other materials on which the application is based. The application shall state following:
    (i) the case number of the existing arbitration;
    (ii) the name, gender, date of birth, work unit, domicile, telephone, fax, email and other expedient means of contact of each of the parties, including the additional party.
    (iii) the claim, grounds, facts, and the arbitration agreement the request for joinder relies on.
    (3) Prior to the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, the SJZAC shall determine whether the request for joinder is allowed. After the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, if the request for joinder has been agreed upon by both parties and the additional parties, and the additional parties accept the previous proceeding, the Arbitral Tribunal shall determine whether or not to allow the request for joinder.
Article 18. Submission and Number of Copies
    (1) All arbitration documents from the parties shall be submitted to the SJZAC, and thereafter be transferred to the Arbitral Tribunal and the other parties.
    (2) The parties may agree to submit the arbitration documents to the Arbitral Tribunal. They shall submit copies of the arbitration documents to the SJZAC accordingly.
    (3) When submitting the Request for Arbitration, the Counterclaim, the Statement of Defense, evidence and other written documents, the parties shall ensure that each tribunal arbitrator, each party, and the SJZAC will have a copy of the same.
Article 19. Preservation Measures
    (1) A party may apply for preservation of property, or to require the other party to perform or to refrain from performing a specific act, if the other party’s acts or some other circumstances may render the arbitral award impossible or difficult to be enforced, or the interests of the party applying for preservation may suffer damages.
   (2) A party may apply for preservation of evidence where it is likely that the evidence may be destroyed or become difficult to obtain later on.
   (3) If a party applies for preservation, the SJZAC shall produce an official letter and forward the application to the competent court of law.
   (4) In urgent circumstances, A party may apply for preservation to a competent court before the commencement of arbitration if the legitimate interests of the party applying for preservation may suffer irreparable damages without an immediate preservation.
Article 20. Representatives
   (1) The parties or the legal representative may authorize one to five representatives to handle matters relating to the arbitration. A Power of Attorney shall be submitted to the SJZAC.
   (2) A Power of Attorney shall specify the matters and scope of authorization. Where the authorization covers the power to appoint arbitrators, to file the counterclaim, to accept, waive and/or change the claims or counterclaims, to withdraw the request for arbitration, or to participate in mediation and conciliation, special authorization by the party or a party’s legal representative shall be submitted.
    (3) If the parties or the legal representatives change or terminate the representation, they shall inform the SJZAC in writing.

Chapter IV Arbitral Tribunal

Article 21. Formation of the Arbitral Tribunal
    (1) The Arbitral Tribunal may consist of one or three arbitrators.
    (2) The Arbitral Tribunal shall be composed of three arbitrators with one presiding arbitrator unless otherwise agreed by the parties or provided by the Rules.
Article 22. Appointment of Arbitrator
    (1) The SJZAC maintains a Panel of Arbitrators, and specialized panels of arbitrators when necessary. Arbitrators shall be chosen by the parties from the Panel of Arbitrators provided by the SJZAC.
    (2) Each party shall nominate, or entrust the Chairman to appoint, one arbitrator within 10 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration. If a party fails to do so within the stipulated time period, the arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman.
     (3) For a party comprising two or more Claimants or Respondents, the group of the Claimants or Respondents should, through consultations, jointly nominate or jointly entrust the Chairman to appoint the arbitrator. If, within 10 days of the receipt by the last party of the Notice of Arbitration, they have failed to jointly nominate the arbitrator or jointly authorize the Chairman to appoint the arbitrator, the arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman.
    (4) Within 10 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the parties shall jointly nominate or jointly entrust the Chairman to appoint the presiding arbitrator. If the parties fail to do so within the time limit, the presiding arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman.
    (5) The parties may entrust the party-nominated arbitrators to select the presiding arbitrator within the time limit set forth in Article22(4). Within 3 days after being notified, the party-nominated arbitrators shall select the presiding arbitrator. Such presiding arbitrator shall be deemed to be the mutual choice of the parties.
    (6) Each party may nominate one to two arbitrators as the candidates for the presiding arbitrator (“Nomination List”) within the time limit set forth in Article22(4). Upon request or agreement of the parties, the SJZAC may also provide a list of five to seven candidates for the presiding arbitrator from which the parties shall each select one to three persons, within 3 days, as candidates in order of preference (“Selection List”) and submit it to the SJZAC. Where there is only one common candidate on the Nomination Lists or the Selection Lists , such candidate shall be the presiding arbitrator jointly nominated by the parties. If there is more than one common candidate, the one at the front of preference will be regarded as the presiding arbitrator jointly nominated by the parties. If the presiding arbitrator still cannot be ascertained in this manner, the Chairman shall, taking into consideration the specific circumstances of the case, confirm one of the common candidates as the presiding arbitrator, who shall be regarded as being jointly nominated by the parties. If there are no common candidates, the Chairman shall appoint the presiding arbitrator from outside the Nomination List or the Selection List.
    (7) Where the SJZAC allows the joinder’s request to include additional parties, the additional parties, as either a Claimant or a Respondent, shall select the arbitrator or presiding arbitrator according to Article22.
    (8) The party shall bear the arbitrator's necessarily travelling expenses in hearing the cases, if it nominates an arbitrator living outside Shijiazhuang. The party shall make a deposit in advance as required. If a party fails to make the deposit in advance, it shall be deemed that the party has failed to nominate an arbitrator. The Chairman may appoint an arbitrator for the party in accordance with the Rules.
    (9) Where an arbitrator declines to accept a party's nomination or cannot attend the hearing due to health or other factors that may affect performance of the arbitrator's duty, the party shall nominate another arbitrator within 5 days of its receipt of the notice for re-nomination. The arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman if the party fails to make the new appointment within the time limit.
Article 23. Notice of Formation of Arbitral Tribunal
    Within 5 days of the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, the SJZAC shall send the notice of its formation(the “Notice of Formation of Arbitral Tribunal) to the parties.
Article 24. Disclosure by Arbitrator
    (1) A nominated or appointed arbitrator must sign a declaration of independence and impartiality.
    (2) An arbitrator, aware of circumstances relating to the parties or their authorized representatives, which might lead any one of the parties to doubt reasonably his independence or impartiality, shall disclose those circumstances in writing in due course.
    (3) The SJZAC shall send the declaration of independence and impartiality (the “Arbitrator Declaration”)and copies of written disclosure statement to all parties.
Article 25. Challenge to the Arbitrator
    (1) Within 5 days of receipt of such disclosure, any party shall raise their objections on the basis of circumstances disclosed by the arbitrator, if any. A party who fails to challenge an arbitrator within the stipulated period of time shall not be permitted to challenge the arbitrator based on the circumstances already disclosed by the arbitrator.
    (2) In any of the circumstances set out below, an arbitrator shall withdraw from his office as an arbitrator and the parties also have the right to request his withdrawal:
    (a) the arbitrator is a party to the arbitration, or a close relative of any party or any party's authorized representatives;
    (b) the arbitrator has personal interests in the dispute;
    (c) the arbitrator met with a party or its authorized representatives in private, or accepted from a party or its authorized representatives an offer of entertainment or gift.
    (d) the arbitrator has any other relationship with a party or its authorized representatives which may affect the arbitrator's impartiality in the arbitration.
    (3) “Other relationship” mentioned in Article 25 (2) (d) refers to:
    (a) having advised a party to the case;
    (b) working with the party or its authorized representatives for the same working unit or used to work for the same working unit and left within the last 2 years.
    (c) being a current legal adviser, other adviser or was a former legal adviser or other adviser for a party and it has been less than 2 years since ceasing to be the legal adviser or other adviser.
    (d) other circumstances that may impair impartial arbitration.
    (4) The challenge to an arbitrator shall be raised prior to the first oral hearing; if the matter giving rise to the challenge becomes known to the party after the first hearing, the challenge may be made before the conclusion of the final hearing of the case except as stipulated in Article25(1). For a case heard on documents only or after the close of the hearings, the challenge to the arbitrator shall be submitted within 5 days from the date of awareness of the matters leading to the challenge.
     (5) In the case where a party who, after becoming aware of the composition of the Arbitral Tribunal, appoints authorized representatives and thereby brings about the very grounds for challenge to an arbitrator , this party shall be deemed to have waived its right to challenge the arbitrator on those very grounds.
     (6) The Chairman shall decide on the challenge. Where the Chairman acting as an arbitrator is challenged, the SJZAC collectively shall rule on the challenge. The challenged arbitrator continues to perform his/her duties pending the decision on the challenge.
     (7) The provisions of this article shall apply to translators, appraisers and other related people.
Article 26. Replacement of Arbitrator
    (1) After the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, an arbitrator shall be replaced in one of the following circumstances:
    (a) if the arbitrator becomes unable to participate in the arbitration as a result of his death or health reason;
    (b) an arbitrator withdraws from the arbitration on his/her own initiative or upon request from both parties;
    (c) the arbitrator withdraws because of a conflict of interest;
    (d) The arbitrator is unable to fulfill his/her duties de facto or de jure, or has not been fulfilling his functions in accordance with the Rules.
    (2) The replacement of the Arbitrator shall be determined by the Chairman.
    (3) If the arbitrator to be replaced was nominated by a party, that party shall nominate another arbitrator within 5 days of its receipt of the notice of replacement. If the arbitrator to be replaced was appointed by the Chairman, the Chairman shall appoint another arbitrator. Within 5 days of such nomination and appointment, a notice on the re-formation of the Arbitral Tribunal shall be served on the parties.
   (4) After the re-formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, a party may request that prior arbitral proceedings be repeated, in which case the Arbitral Tribunal shall determine whether to grant or not. The Arbitral Tribunal may also on its own initiative, decide whether and to what extent the previous arbitral proceedings shall be repeated. The time limit stipulated in Articles 53, 63 and 72 shall be re-calculated from the date of the re-formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, if the Arbitral Tribunal decides to repeat all the arbitral proceedings.
Article 27. Majority of the Arbitrators Continuing to Arbitrate
    If after the conclusion of the last hearing, one of the three arbitrators of the Arbitral Tribunal cannot continue the arbitration, due to death or other reasons, subject to the consent of the parties and the approval of the Chairman, the other two arbitrators can continue to arbitrate.
Article 28. Arbitrators Delisted by the SJZAC
    In the term of an arbitrator has not been renewed, the case that started when he was on the panel may continue to be arbitrated by the arbitrator until the close of the procedure. An arbitrator who has been dismissed from that panel shall not continue to arbitrate unless all the parties agree.

Chapter V Evidence

Article 29. Classification of Evidence
Evidence includes parties’ statements, documentary evidence, material evidence, audio-video materials, electronic data, witness testimony, appraiser’s opinions and other evidence.
Article 30. Burden of Proof
   (1) Each party bears the burden of proving the facts relied upon to support its case, unless otherwise provided by law.
   (2) If a party bearing the burden of proof fails to produce evidence within the specified period of time, or if the evidence produced is insufficient to prove its allegations, it bears the adverse consequences of such failure.
   (3)If a party who holds evidence refuses to provide such evidence without justified reasons, and if the other party claims that the content of the evidence is unfavorable to its holder, then the Arbitral Tribunal may deem that the asserted claims should be sustained.
Article 31. Term of Producing Evidence
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal may specify a time period for the parties to produce evidence and the parties shall produce evidence within the specified time period. The Arbitral Tribunal may refuse to admit any evidence produced after that deadline, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties or where the Arbitral Tribunal considers it necessary to admit the evidence.
   (2) If a party experiences difficulties in producing evidence within the specified time period, it may apply for an extension before the expiry of the period. The Arbitral Tribunal shall decide whether or not to extend the time period.
   (3) When necessary, the Arbitral Tribunal may specify a time period for the parties to produce supplementary evidence and the parties shall produce supplementary evidence within the specified time period.
The parties submitting evidence shall have them bound together, and marked with serial and page numbers. A list of the evidence should be provided, briefly stating the name, origin and content of the evidence, signed or sealed and dated.
Article 32. Submit the Evidence
   The parties submit the evidence shall be binding on their own, indicate the serial number and page Numbers, and evidence attached list, briefly stated the evidence, certificate of origin and content, the name of the signature or seal and indicating the date of submission.
Article 33. Collection of Evidence by Arbitral Tribunal
   Where the Arbitral Tribunal finds it necessary to collect the evidence, the Arbitral Tribunal may collect such evidence on its own initiative. If necessary, the Arbitral Tribunal can require the parties' presence. The Arbitral Tribunal may proceed with the collection of evidence even if one or more of the parties fail to appear after being notified.
Article 34. Examination of Evidence
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal may, in case of need, arrange for the parties to examine the evidence by themselves and may authorize the arbitration secretary to organize the parties to do this work.
   (2) In the event of an oral hearing, evidence shall be produced for examination by the parties, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties.
   (3) In the case of a hearing by document only, the parties may examine the evidence in writing.
   (4) For examining the evidence in writing, the parties shall submit written opinions of examination within the time limit prescribed by the Arbitral Tribunal.
   (5) The evidence collected by the Arbitral Tribunal on its own initiative, shall be examined in accordance with the provisions of Article34(2)(3)(4).
Article 35. Witness Testimony
   (1) Where a party requests for permission for a witness to appear before the tribunal, the request must be submitted in writing within the stipulated period of time for the submission of evidence.
   (2) Written requests for witnesses to testify shall clearly state the name, domicile, telephone number, fax, e-mail, and any other expedient means of contact of the witness as well as what the witness intends to testify. The witness’s identity documents must be attached.
   (3) If a party requests for a witness to appear before the tribunal, permission should be sought from the Arbitral Tribunal. The party and the Arbitral Tribunal may question the witness on relevant issues. The witness must give truthful answers. If he/she makes false statements, he/she shall bear legal responsibility.
Article 36.Appraisal
   (1) If any party requests an appraisal and the Arbitral Tribunal consents, or if the Arbitral Tribunal on its own motion considers an appraisal necessary, the Arbitral Tribunal may notify the parties to jointly nominate an appraiser within a specified period of time. If the parties fail to do so, the appraiser must be appointed by the Arbitral Tribunal.
   (2) The parties must pay a deposit of the appraisal costs according to the agreement of the parties or the decision of the Arbitral Tribunal. The Arbitral Tribunal has the power to decide not to carry out the appraisal if the parties do not pay the deposit.
   (3) The Arbitral Tribunal may require the parties to produce and provide any document, data，property or any other articles needed for the appraisal.
  (4) The appraiser shall issue a written appraisal report to be forwarded by the SJZAC to the two parties. The parties shall submit a written opinion within the time limit specified by the Arbitral Tribunal. In accordance with the request of the parties or the demand of the Arbitral Tribunal, the appraiser shall appear in an oral hearing. The parties may, upon the permission of the Arbitral Tribunal, question the appraisers on matters relating to the appraisal report, which shall be explained and clarified by the appraisers.
   (5) The appraisal period from the time the decision is made to the time when the appraisal report is given or to the time when the supplementary appraisal report is given, or until the Arbitral Tribunal decides to abandon the appraisal, will be excluded from the calculations as stipulated under Articles 53, 63 and 72.
Article 37. Expert Assistant
    (1) A party may apply for a person with special knowledge (the “Expert Assistant”) to appear before the tribunal to present its opinions on expert appraisals or the specific issue relating to the facts of the case on behalf of that party. The Arbitral Tribunal is to decide whether to grant the application or not.
   (2) Where a party applies for an Expert Assistant to appear before the tribunal, it shall submit a written application which shall specify the Expert Assistant's name, gender, work unit, contact detail and the specific issue he will testify upon, his identity documents, evidence of the Expert Assistant’s qualification on the specific issues and etc.
   (3) The Arbitral Tribunal may organize the parties to question the Expert Assistant who appears before the tribunal, and the opinions expressed by the Expert Assistant shall be deemed to be the statements of the party who applied for the Expert Assistant to appear before the tribunal.
   (4) Upon the approval of the Arbitral Tribunal, Expert Assistants brought by each of the parties respectively may examine each other on the specific issues of the case.
   (5) The Expert Assistant may question the appraiser.
Article 38. Determination of Evidence
   (1) The evidence shall be determined by the Arbitral Tribunal; The Arbitral Tribunal shall decide on the admissibility of the appraisal report of appraisers and the opinions of Experts Assistant.
   (2) When determining the evidence or deciding whether to accept the report of the appraisers and the opinion of the Expert Assistant, the Arbitral Tribunal shall take into consideration general practice of the specific sector of industries and trade customs, in addition to the stipulations of relevant laws, regulations and case situation.

Chapter VI Arbitral Proceedings

Article 39. Mode of Hearing
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall hold an oral hearing to examine the case. If the parties agree to go without an oral hearing, the Arbitral Tribunal may hear the case on the basis of documents only.
   (2) The Arbitral Tribunal shall treat the parties fairly and impartially and give each party a reasonable opportunity to present and argue its case.
   (3) The Arbitral Tribunal has the power to determine the hearing schedule, issue a list of questions for the parties to answer, hold a pre-hearing conference, make terms of reference, etc. It can also make arrangements for the exchange of evidence, as well as the examination of the evidence, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.
Article 40. Concurrent Hearings
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal may decide to hear two or more cases at the same time, subject to all the following conditions:
   (a) the subject matters are of the same kind or related;
   (b) one party applies and other parties agree;
   (c) the persons who constitute the Arbitral Tribunal and their capacities are the same.
   (2) The Arbitral Tribunal may decide on the specific procedures or methods of consolidation of hearing as per the circumstances of the case.
Article 41. Consolidation of Arbitration
   (1) If a party applies for consolidation of arbitrations and the other party agrees, the SJZAC may decide to consolidate two or more cases into the case first initiated, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties.
   (2) The SJZAC may decide whether or not to consolidate, which is based upon the relevance of the related case, the arbitration agreement, the procedures already carried out, and the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, etc.
Article 42. Place of Hearing
   (1) The location of the SJZAC and its Working Organizations shall be the place for hearing. If the Chairman agrees, the hearing may be held at the place which the Arbitral Tribunal deems appropriate or which the parties agree upon.
   (2) Where the parties agree to hold an hearing at a place other than the location of the SJZAC, they shall pay a deposit to cover the expenses incurred thereby, and the deposit shall be paid in accordance with the time limits prescribed by the SJZAC and in accordance with the agreement of the parties or the decisions of the Arbitral Tribunal. If no deposit is made, the parties will be deemed to have not agreed upon the place of the hearing.
Article 43. Notice of Hearing
   (1) At least 5 days prior to the first hearing, the two parties shall be notified of the hearing. If the parties agree, the Arbitral Tribunal may move the hearing forward to an earlier date.
   (2) If parties have justified reasons, they may request at least 3 days prior to the scheduled hearing to postpone the hearing. The Arbitral Tribunal shall decide whether or not to postpone the hearing.
   (3) The notification of the date of second hearing and subsequent hearings and the postponed hearings shall not be limited by the time limit specified in Article(1); for the application for postponement of the second and subsequent hearings, the time limit prescribed in Article(2) shall not be applicable.
Article 44. Default
    (1) If the Claimant, having been duly notified in writing of the hearing, fails to appear at the hearing without any justifiable reason or leaves an ongoing hearing without the permission of the Arbitral Tribunal, the Claimant shall be deemed to have withdrawn its Request for Arbitration. Where the Respondent has submitted a counterclaim, the Arbitral Tribunal may examine the counterclaim of the Respondent on default.
    (2) If the Respondent, having been duly notified in writing of the hearing, fails to appear at the hearing without any justifiable reason or leaves an ongoing hearing without the permission of the Arbitral Tribunal, the Arbitral Tribunal may proceed with the hearing on default. Thereupon the Respondent shall be deemed to have withdrawn its Counterclaim, if there were any.
Article 45. Debate and Final Submissions
   (1) The parties have right to debate during the hearing. The Arbitral Tribunal may require the parties to submit written arguments in accordance with the circumstances of the case.
   (2) At the close of the hearing, the Arbitral Tribunal shall solicit final submissions from the parties, which may be presented orally during the hearing or in writing within a period of time specified by the Arbitral Tribunal.
Article 46. Record of Hearing
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall keep minutes of the hearing, and the Arbitral Tribunal may make an audio or video record of the hearing.
   (2) The parties and other participants in the arbitration may request a rectification of any error and omission in the minutes of their oral presentation. The request shall be recorded if the Arbitral Tribunal does not allow the rectification.
   (3) The arbitrator, the reporter, the parties, and other participants in the arbitration shall sign or affix their seals on the minutes. If a party or another arbitration participant does not sign or seal it, this situation should be recorded, which will not affect the effectiveness of the hearing’s record.
Article 47. Suspension and Resumption of Arbitral Proceedings
    (1) In the event of any of the following circumstances, the arbitral proceedings shall be suspended:
    (a) if a party dies, pending the successor’s decision whether to participate in the arbitration;
    (b) when a party concerned capacity to participate in arbitration, determination of its legal representative is pending;
    (c) when a party, whether it being a legal person or other organizations, terminates pending the determination of the successor who will take on the rights and obligations;
    (d) the parties concerned cannot participate in arbitration because of force majeure;
    (e) the examination of the present case must be based on the outcome of another case while such other case has not yet been concluded;
    (f) other circumstances where arbitration shall be suspended.
    (2) The arbitral proceedings shall be resumed after the circumstances referred to in the provisions of Article(1) are no longer operative.
    (3) The arbitral proceedings may be suspended if the parties jointly request. If a party applies for the resumption of the arbitral proceedings, or the Arbitral Tribunal or the SJZAC deems it necessary, the arbitral proceedings may be resumed.
    (4) The decision to suspend or resume the arbitration should be made by the SJZAC before the Arbitral Tribunal is formed, or be made by the Arbitral Tribunal after it is formed.
    (5) The period of suspension of the arbitral proceedings shall not be counted in the period specified in Articles 53, 63 and72 of the Rules.
Article 48. Withdrawal of the Request for Arbitration and Cancellation of the Case
   (1) After requesting for arbitration, the Claimant may withdraw the request for arbitration. But if the Respondent has lodged counterclaims, the Claimant’s withdrawal will not prevent the Arbitral Tribunal from hearing and awarding on the counterclaim. The Respondent may withdraw the counterclaims. But if the Respondent withdraws counterclaims, the Respondent’s withdrawal will not prevent the Arbitral Tribunal from hearing and awarding on the request for arbitration.
   (2) The parties may request for arbitration again in accordance with the arbitration agreement after their withdrawal of the request for arbitration or the counterclaim.
   (3) If the request for arbitration is withdrawn, and if counterclaims are also withdrawn, the arbitration case may be cancelled; When the arbitral proceedings become unnecessary for some reasons or become impossible to continue, the arbitration case may be cancelled.
   (4) Before the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, the decision on cancellation of the arbitration case shall be made by the SJZAC. After the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, the decision to cancel the arbitration case shall be made by the Arbitral Tribunal.

Chapter VII Mediation

Article 49. Mediation by the Arbitral Tribunal
    (1) Before rendering an arbitral award, the Arbitral Tribunal may mediate the case. If the parties are willing to mediate, the Arbitral Tribunal shall mediate the case.
    (2) The Arbitral Tribunal may, at the request of the parties or upon obtaining the consent of the parties, mediate the case in a manner it considers appropriate.
    (3) Upon the consent of the parties, the Arbitral Tribunal may entrust the presiding arbitrator or a co-arbitrator to mediate the case.
   (4) When an agreement is reached through mediation, the Arbitral Tribunal shall render a mediation statement(the “Mediation Statement”) or render an arbitral award(the “Arbitral Award”) in accordance with the results of the agreement.
   (5) If the parties reach a settlement by themselves, they may request the Arbitral Tribunal to render a Statement of Mediation or render an arbitral award in accordance with the terms of the settlement.
Article 50. Mediation Statement
    (1) The Mediation Statement shall state the claims and the settlement agreement reached by the parties.
    (2) The Arbitral Tribunal shall make rectification to the mistakes of wording, calculation and omissions in the Mediation Statement ; the party may request the Arbitral Tribunal to make rectification within 30 days from the date of receipt of the Mediation Statement.The Rectification of Mediation Statement are an integral part of the Mediation Statement .
    (3) The Mediation Statement and any The Rectification of Mediation Statement shall be signed by the arbitrators and affixed with the seal of the SJZAC before being sent to the parties.
    (4) The Mediation Statement shall become legally effective from the date of signature of its receipt by the parties. Where any party reneges on the agreement before signing the receipt of the Mediation Statement, the Arbitral Tribunal shall render an award in time.
    (5) A Mediation Statement shall have the same legal force as that of an Arbitral Award.
Article 51. The content of the mediation not to be invoked
    If the mediation fails, neither opinions, views, statements, agreements, disagreements, nor suggestions expressed in the course of the mediation may be cited and relied upon by any party to support its claims, counterclaims or defense in subsequent arbitral proceedings, judicial proceedings or any other proceedings.

Chapter Ⅷ Decision and Award

Article 52. Decision
(1) The SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal has the power to make decisions on the procedural matters.
(2) The decision of the Arbitral Tribunal should be based upon the unanimous opinion,if there is no unanimous opinion, it should be based upon the majority opinion; if there is no majority opinion, it should be based upon the opinion of the presiding arbitrator.
(3) The presiding arbitrator may make decisions alone on procedural matters if the parties agree or the co-arbitrators authorize it.
(4) The decision is legally effective from the date of its making.
Article 53. Arbitral Award
    (1)The Arbitral Tribunal shall render a fair and reasonable award in accordance with the facts and the provisions of law.
    (2) An arbitral award shall be made in accordance with the unanimous opinions of the Arbitral Tribunal; if no consensus can be reached, the decision shall be made in accordance with the opinions of the majority of arbitrators; if no majority opinions can be formed, the decision shall be made in accordance with the opinions of the presiding arbitrator.
    (3) An Arbitral Award shall state the arbitral claims, related facts in dispute, the reasons for the award, result of the award, the allocation of arbitral costs and the date of the award. The facts in dispute and the reasons for the award may be omitted if the parties so agree.
    (4) The Arbitral Tribunal may render a partial award for the part of the facts that are clarified.
    (5) The Arbitral Tribunal shall render separate Arbitral Awards for each case which has been jointly examined unless the parties agree to have one Arbitral Awards.
    (6) The Arbitral Awards shall be signed by the arbitrators and stamped with the seal of the SJZAC. An arbitrator who has dissenting opinions on the award may sign or may choose not to sign it.
    (7) The Arbitral Tribunal shall render an Arbitral Awards within 4 months from the date of the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal. For a special case where the time limit needs to be extended, an application shall be made by the presiding arbitrator, and the time limit may be extended upon the Chairman's approval.
Article 54. Allocation of the Arbitration Costs
    (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall determine in its award how the costs of the arbitration should be allocated between the parties.
    (2) Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, the costs of the arbitration shall in principle be borne by the losing party. If the parties are only partially successful in cases, the Arbitral Tribunal shall decide on the proportion of each party's share of the costs based on each party's liability.
    (3) The Arbitral Tribunal may award, at the request of the winning party, that the losing party bears the cost and expenses reasonably incurred on the part of the winning party in the arbitration. In deciding this issue, consideration shall be given to the results of the award, the complexity of the case, the actual workload of the parties or representatives, and the disputed amount, and other relevant factors of the case.
Article 55. Rectification of Arbitral Award
   (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall rectify any clerical or computational error, and any omission from its decision of claims in the Arbitral Award.
   (2) Any party may, on discovering the existence of any of the circumstances stipulated in the Article55(1), request in writing within 30 days of the date of receipt of the award that the Arbitral Tribunal should make an award rectification.
   (3) Any Rectification of the Arbitral Award given by the Arbitral Tribunal shall be an integral part of the Arbitral Award.
Article 56. The validity and Performance of the Award
   (1) The Arbitral Award is legally effective as of the date it is made. The arbitral award is final and binding upon the parties.
   (2) The parties shall perform their duties as set out in the Arbitral Award within the time limit prescribed in the arbitral award; if the Arbitral Award does not specify a time limit for performance, it shall be performed immediately.
   (3) If a party fails to perform the Arbitral Award, any other party may apply to the court for enforcement.
Article 57. Re-arbitration
    (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall submit its written opinion to the SJZAC on agreement or disagreement on the re-arbitration of the case after receiving the notice of re-arbitration forwarded by the SJZAC from the court of law. Thereafter the SJZAC shall so notify the court.
   (2) If the Arbitral Tribunal agrees to re-arbitrate the case, the Arbitral Tribunal shall proceed accordingly.
ChapterⅨ Summary Procedure
Article 58. Scope of Application
    (1) The summary procedure set out in this chapter shall apply if the amount in dispute does not exceed RMB1,000,000, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties or otherwise stipulated by the Rules.
    (2) If the parties agree to apply the summary procedure even if the amount in dispute exceeds RMB1,000,000, the summary procedure should be applied.
    (3) Where there is no dispute amount or the dispute amount cannot be determined, the SJZAC will determine whether the summary procedure is applicable, taking into consideration the complexity of the case, the size of the interest involved, and other relevant factors.
    (4) The relevant provisions in Chapter X shall apply for matters stipulated in the Chapter X on summary procedure.
Article 59. Acceptance of Case
    The SJZAC shall accept the arbitration case within 3 days after receipt of the deposit of the arbitration fee. Within 3 days from the date of receipt of the request for arbitration, the SJZAC shall send to the Claimant of the Notice of Arbitration, the Rules, the SJZAC’s Panel of Arbitrators; the SJZAC shall also send to the Respondent a copy of the Request for Arbitration and the attached evidence materials, as well as the Notice of Arbitration ,the Rules, the SJZAC’s Panel of Arbitrators.
Article 60. Defense and Counterclaim
    (1) Within 5 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the Respondent shall submit to the SJZAC its Statement of Defense and any relevant supporting documents. A counterclaim, if any, shall also be submitted within the same 5 day time period, together with any relevant supporting documents.
    (2) Within 3 days from the date of acceptance of the counterclaim, the SJZAC shall send the Notice of Acceptance of the Counterclaim to the Respondent; the SJZAC will also send a copy of the Notice of Acceptance, a copy of the Counterclaim and the attached evidence material to the Claimant.
    (3) The Claimant shall, within 5 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Acceptance of the Counterclaim, submit the Statement of Defense on Counterclaims and the evidence materials to the SJZAC.
    (4) Within 3 days from the date of receipt of the Statement of Defense on Counterclaim, the SJZAC shall send copies of the Defense and the attached evidence materials to the Respondent and other Claimants.
Article 61. Formation of Arbitral Tribunal
    (1) For cases applying the summary Procedure, the Arbitral Tribunal shall be composed of a sole arbitrator.
    (2) Within 5 days of the receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the parties shall jointly nominate or jointly entrust the Chairman to appoint a sole arbitrator from the SJZAC's Panel of Arbitrators, If the parties fail to do so within the time limit, the sole arbitrator shall be appointed by the Chairman.
    (3) Within the time limit set forth in Article 61(2), each party shall recommend one to five arbitrators as the sole arbitrator candidates, or, with application or agreement of the parties, SJZAC shall recommend a five to seven sole arbitrator candidate list which will be selected one to three arbitrators as sole arbitrator candidates and submit to SJZAC with preference order within 3 days after receiving the aforesaid candidate list.
    If there is one common arbitrator in the two lists, respectively, that person shall be the sole arbitrator jointly nominated by the parties.
    If there are two or more common arbitrators there, the one in the front will be regarded as the sole Arbitrator jointly nominated by the parties; if it can’t determine who is in the front, the Chairman will appoint an arbitrator to be the sole Arbitrator of the case in the candidates based on the case circumstance.
    If there is no common arbitrator in the two lists, the Chairman shall appoint an arbitrator beyond the aforesaid lists to be the sole arbitrator.
    Notice of the Formation of the tribunal to the parties within 3 days after formation of the Arbitral Tribunal.
Article 62. Notice of Hearing
    (1) The parties shall be given written notice 3 days prior to the first hearing.
    (2) If the parties have justifiable reasons, they may request a postponement of the hearing 1 day prior to the hearing. The Arbitral Tribunal shall decide whether to postpone or not.
    (3) The notice of a second hearing and later ones of the postponement shall not be subject to the terms of this Article 62 (1). For the application for postponement of the second hearing and later ones, the time limit shall not be subject to the stipulations of Article62 (2).
Article 63. Time Period for Rendering Award
    The Arbitral Tribunal shall render its award within 2 months after its compose. If there are special circumstances justifying an extension, the Chairman may, at the request of the sole arbitrator, approve a suitable extension.
Article 64. Summary Procedures changing to Ordinary Procedures
    (1) In the course of a summary procedure, it may be converted into an ordinary procedure upon mutual written application of the parties or upon a written application by one party and agreed by other parties.
    (2) The summary procedure shall not be affected by the amendment of the arbitral claim or the raising and amendment of the counterclaims which causes the amount in dispute to exceed RMB 1,000,000. If a party considers the proceeding under the summary procedure may be affected, it may apply for converting into ordinary procedure. The Chairman has discretion to allow or decline the request.
    (3) If converting from the summary procedure into the ordinary procedure, the ordinary procedure shall apply from the date of convert. The parties shall, within 10 days from the receipt of notice of change of procedure, nominate or entrust respectively the Chairman to appoint the arbitrators in accordance with the provisions of the Rules. Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, the original sole arbitrator shall be the presiding arbitrator.
    (4) The new Arbitral Tribunal shall decide whether or not to repeat, to arbitrate in whole or in part, the arbitral proceedings already conducted prior to its formation, if any. If the new Arbitral Tribunal decides that the arbitral proceedings should be carried out all over again, the Arbitral Award shall be rendered within 4 months from the date of the formation of the new Arbitral Tribunal.
Article 65. Application of other provisions of the Rules
   In respect to matters not provided in this Chapter, other relevant provisions of the Rules shall apply or refer to.

Chapter X Special Provisions for International Commercial Arbitration

Article 66. Scope of Application
    (1) Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, the provisions of this Chapter apply to international or foreign-related commercial cases. In respect of matters not provided in Chapter X, the other relevant provisions of the Rules shall apply.
    (2) Cases relating to Hong Kong Special Administrative Region , Macao Special Administrative Region and the Taiwan region may be conducted by reference to the provisions of Chapter X.
    (3) If the parties concerned dispute whether the case is an international or foreign-related commercial case, the decision shall be made by the SJZAC before the Arbitral Tribunal is formed, and by the Arbitral Tribunal after it is formed. The decision of the Arbitral Tribunal shall not affect the arbitration procedure that has already been conducted earlier on.
    (4) The provisions of Chapter X shall apply from the date that the case is determined as an international or foreign-related commercial one by SJZAC or Arbitral Tribunal.
Article 67. Defense and Counterclaim
    (1) Within 45 days (30 days in case of summary procedure) after the receipt of Notice of Arbitration, the Respondent shall submit to the SJZAC its Statement of Defense, evidence and other relevant materials. Counterclaims, if any, shall also be submitted to the SJZAC within the aforementioned period.
    (2) The Claimant shall submit to the SJZAC the Statement of Defense and the evidence against the counter-claims within 45 days (or 30 days in case of summary procedure) from the date of receipt of the notice of acceptance of the Counterclaim.
Article 68. Formation of the Arbitral Tribunal
    (1) Within 20 days of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, the parties shall, pursuant to the provisions of Article 22, nominate or appoint the arbitrator.
    (2) For a case in which summary procedure is applied, the party concerned shall, within 10 days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Arbitration, nominate or appoint the arbitrator in accordance with the provisions of article 61 of the Rules.
    (3) Any party may also select people who are not on the Panel of Arbitrators to act as arbitrator, but shall provide to the SJZAC the candidate’s resume and detailed contact information, after being approved by the SJZAC, he/she may serve as an arbitrator.
Article 69. Provisional Measures
    (1) At the request of the parties, the Arbitral Tribunal may order any provisional measures it deems appropriate in accordance with the applicable law. An order for provisional measures may take the form of a decision of the Arbitral Tribunal or any other form permitted by the applicable law. Where necessary, the Arbitral Tribunal has the power to require the requiring parties to provide appropriate security.
    (2) The parties may also apply for provisional measures to the court.
Article 70. Emergency Arbitrator
     (1) Before the formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, any party that wishes to apply for provisional measures may submit a written application to the SJZAC for the appointment of an Emergency Arbitrator in accordance with the applicable law. The SJZAC shall decide whether or not to approve such application.
    (2) If the SJZAC approves to appoint an emergency arbitrator, he/she shall be appointed from the Panel of Arbitrators within 2 days from the date of payment of the corresponding fees as per regulation of the SJZAC, and the SJZAC shall notify the parties of the appointment.
    (3) The information disclosure and withdrawal of emergency arbitrators shall be referred to the provisions of Article 24 and Article 25 of the Rules.
    (4) The emergency arbitrator shall have the power to examine the application for provisional measures in a manner which he considers appropriate, but shall ensure that a party have a reasonable opportunity to present its case.
    (5) The emergency arbitrator shall, within 15 days from the date of the appointment, issue the relevant decision, order or award, and state the reasons. The decision, order or award shall be signed by the emergency arbitrator and sealed by the SJZAC and then sent to the parties.
    (6) Where a party objects to the decision, order or award made by the emergency arbitrator, it may, within 3 days from the date of its receipt, to submit an application for modification, suspension or revocation. The emergency arbitrator will decide whether or not to grant such application.
    (7) Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, the emergency arbitrator shall not act as an arbitrator in the proceedings to which the application for provisional measures relates.
    (8) The relevant decisions, orders or awards made by emergency arbitrator in relation to the above procedures shall not be binding upon the Arbitral Tribunal. The Arbitral Tribunal may amend, suspend or revoke the relevant decisions, orders or awards made by the emergency arbitrators.
Article 71. Notice of Hearing
    (1) In the case of a first hearing, a written notice shall be given to the parties 30 days (10 days, in case of summary procedure) ahead of time. The Arbitral Tribunal may hold the hearing at an earlier date, subject to the mutual consent of the parties.
    (2) If a party has justifiable reasons to apply for an postponement, the application should be submitted in writing to the SJZAC no less than 10 days prior to the hearing (5 days, if the summary procedure is applicable). The Arbitral Tribunal shall decide whether or not to postpone the hearing.
    (3) The notice of the date of any subsequent hearing or the date of postponed hearing, shall not be subject to the time limit in Article 71(1).For the application on postponement of the second hearing and later ones, the provision on the time limit in Article 71(2) shall not apply.
Article 72. Time Period for Rendering Award
    The Arbitral Tribunal shall render its award within 6 months from the date (or 3 months, in the case of summary procedure) of its constitution. If there are special circumstances justifying an extension, the Chairman may, at the request of the presiding arbitrator or sole arbitrator, approve a suitable extension of the time limit.
Article 73. Applicable Law
    (1) The Arbitral Tribunal shall apply the law agreed upon by the parties to decide the dispute. Unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties, the agreed applicable law refers to the substantive rules of law but not to the rules of the conflict of law.
    (2) In the absence of an agreed choice of law, the Arbitral Tribunal has the power to decide on the applicable law as per the actual circumstances of the case.
    (3) In all cases, the Arbitral Tribunal shall render the award in accordance with the valid contractual clauses and the relevant trade practices.

Chapter Ⅺ Specific Procedures

Article 74. Arbitral Confirmation
    (1) If the parties have reached a settlement agreement without involvement of SJZAC，or a mediation agreement before the case is accepted by the SJZAC, the parties can apply to the SJZAC for an Arbitral Tribunal to render an arbitral award or mediation statement according to the contents of the settlement agreement or the mediation agreement.
    (2) Where the settlement agreement or mediation agreement violates the mandatory provisions of the law or administrative regulations or damages the social and ordre public, the Arbitral Tribunal shall reject the request of the parties.
Article 75. Expedited Arbitration
    The parties may agree to waive the rights to nominate arbitrators, submit statements of defense, submit evidence and examine evidence in order to expedite the arbitral proceeding.
Article 76. Specific Arbitration
    If, in accordance with the relevant regulations, the parties in specific areas such as the Pilot Free Trade Zones, or a New Area, have made an agreement that a specific arbitrator should arbitrate certain disputes as per specific arbitration Rules, the SJZAC may provide the relevant arbitration services as requested by the parties.

ChapterⅫ Service and Duration

Article77. Delivery Address
    (1) The parties shall provide the SJZAC a legal and valid address for service of documents. If the service of the documents cannot be accomplished because the address for service is not provided, or the address for service is not accurate or changes to the address for service are not timely notified to the SJZAC, any adverse consequences associated therein will be borne by the parties.
    (2) Where the parties have agreement upon the service address, the agreement prevails.
Article 78. Mode of Service
   The arbitration documents may be sent by direct service, or by postal service, courier service, electronic means, or other means deemed appropriate by the SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal.
Article 79. Direct Service
    In the form of direct service, the documents shall be served upon the addressee in person. If the addressee refuses to sign for the reception of the arbitration documents, service is valid when the documents may be placed at the domicile of the addressee, and photographing or video recording and similar exercises should be done to record the whole process.
Article 80. Postal and Courier Service
    (1) In the form of postal or courier delivery, the SJZAC shall mail the arbitration documents to the service address provided by the parties. If a party’s address is not provided to the SJZAC, the service address agreed upon by the parties will be used in postal and courier delivery services. Without the address of service provided by the parties or agreed upon by the parties, the SJZAC shall serve it at the following address:
    (a) if the party is a natural person, service is made at the natural person's domicile household register address, identity card address or habitual residence;
    (b) if the party is a legal person or other organizations of equal status, service is made at the domicile, place of business or the place of registration with the relevant department of industry and commerce and others.
    (2) If the addressee refuses to sign the receipt of the arbitration document, it shall be deemed to have been served.
    (3) After reasonable inquiries, if addresses provided for in Article 80(1) cannot be found, The SJZAC may, by postal service or by courier service or by any other means provided records of delivery, deliver to the addressee’s last known place of business, place of registration, residence, identity card address, service address or other correspondence address.
Article 81. Electronic Service
    (1) Where the parties agree or the addressee agrees that electronic means should be used, then electronic means will be used for service purposes.
    (2) Where an electronic service is agreed, the party shall confirm its exact electronic address or contact number with the SJZAC.
    (3) Electronic delivery can take the form such as fax, e-mail, mobile communications and other duly received specific electronic systems as media of delivery.
Article 82. Date of Service
    (1) The date of receipt of signature for acceptance of the service by the addressee is the date of service.
    (2) Where the addressee refuses to sign the bill for service, the date of refusal to sign shall be the date of service.
    (3) In the event of non-signature for acceptance of the service prescribed in Article 80 (3)of the Rules, the date of return shall be the date of service.
    (4) In the case of electronic means of service, the dates of record on SJZAC’s system such as fax, e-mail, mobile communications and other means for successful transmission are the dates of service. If there is an alleged discrepancy between the recipient’s and the sender’s times and dates, the date of the recipient shall be effective if the recipient can prove this.
Article 83. Periods
    (1) The first day of a period set in the Rules shall not be included in the calculation period.
    (2) If the last day of a period falls on a holiday, then the first business day following that holiday shall be the expiration date.
    (3) The transit time is not included in the period. Arbitration documents, which are handed over for mail or delivery before the expiration of the arbitration period, shall not be seen as overdue.
    (4) If a party needs to extend the period due to force majeure or other justifiable reasons, an application for extension may be submitted within 10 days from the date of the elimination of the obstruction. Before the Arbitral Tribunal is formed, permission to grant or not grant postponement shall be decided by the SJZAC. Permission shall be decided by the Arbitral Tribunal once it is formed.

Chapter XⅢ Supplementary Provision

Article 84. Arbitration Language
    (1) The official language of the SJZAC is Chinese.
    (2) In international commercial arbitration, the parties may reach agreement on the language to be used; if there is no agreement or they are unable to agree, the SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal may determine Chinese or another language as the language to be used according to the circumstances of the case. The related expenses increased thereby shall be borne by the parties.
    (3) Where a party or its representative or witness needs interpretations during an oral hearing, interpretations may be provided by the SJZAC, or by the party itself. The expenses for interpretations shall be borne by the party itself.
    (4) For documents, evidence and other materials submitted by the parties, if the SJZAC or the Arbitral Tribunal deems it necessary, the parties may be required to provide corresponding translation versions in Chinese or in another language.
Article 85. Interpretation of the Rules
    (1) The power to interpret the Rules is vested in the SJZAC.
    (2) Other documents issued by the SJZAC do not constitute part of the Rules unless the SJZAC has stated otherwise.
Article 86. Versions of the Rules
    The versions in Chinese, English and other languages of the Rules published by the SJZAC are formal versions. In case of any discrepancy between the various versions, the Chinese version shall prevail.
Article 87. Implementation of the Rules
    The Rules are effective as from July 1, 2017. For cases accepted by the SJZAC before the Rules came into effect, the Arbitration Rules effective at the time of such acceptance shall continue to apply. In such event, the Rules may apply if the parties so agree and the SJZAC consents.