01
Risk prevention
Before payment
- Supplier entity and bank-account verification
- Supply contract, NNN and tooling-clause review
- Arbitration clause, payment milestone and inspection design
- Sanctions, UFLPA and country-of-origin first pass
China Supply Chain
Before you pay a Chinese supplier, or after a dispute starts, get a clear legal path.
I help foreign buyers turn supplier problems into a practical sequence: verify the counterparty, preserve evidence, apply pressure, negotiate, arbitrate, or preserve assets when needed.
7 yrs CIETAC institutional experience
400+ commercial arbitration cases
Bilingual Chinese and English case work
You may be stuck in one of these scenarios
Each problem has a different sequence. Identify the scenario first, then decide how much legal cost to deploy.
Non-delivery / delayed delivery
Production keeps slipping, partial shipment stalls, or the supplier asks for a price increase.
Defective goods
The goods arrive with high defect rates, wrong specifications, or inconsistent inspection results.
Deposit recovery
A deposit has been wired, but the supplier refuses to refund or offers only future-order credits.
Supplier disappeared
WeChat goes silent, emails are ignored, and the company status or asset picture starts to look abnormal.
Copied design / weak NDA
The factory uses your drawings, molds, or packaging concept to produce for someone else.
Tooling ownership
You paid for the tooling, but the supplier refuses to return, transfer, or stop using it.
Tariff increase
A new tariff lands mid-order and the parties fight over who absorbs the increase.
UFLPA / sanctions / origin risk
US or EU import compliance, forced-labor screening, and upstream traceability become urgent.
Platform freeze / account dispute
Cross-border e-commerce funds, accounts, platform rules, and supplier liability overlap.
The work does not start with litigation
China supply chain matters usually move in stages. The earlier the intervention, the easier it is to control cost.
02
Damage control
First 48 hours
- Evidence map and gap review
- Bilingual demand letter or lawyer letter
- Refund, replacement, discount or installment strategy
- Platform complaint, regulator complaint and local communication plan
03
Arbitration and preservation
Escalation
- CIETAC, HKIAC or China court route assessment
- Pre-arbitration or in-arbitration asset preservation
- Arbitration submissions, evidence and hearing strategy
- Settlement negotiation, award enforcement and cross-border coordination
Why work with me
Supply chain disputes are not just about legal rules. They require judgment across procedure, evidence, commercial pressure, and enforcement.
CIETAC perspective
I spent seven years at CIETAC and understand how cases move from filing to hearings and awards.
400+ case experience
I have worked on complex commercial arbitration matters involving trade, construction, finance and investment.
Bilingual case handling
I work directly with English contracts, Chinese evidence, supplier communications and international clients.
Shenzhen and Greater Bay Area
Based at JT&N Partners in Shenzhen, close to South China manufacturing, Hong Kong arbitration, and cross-border trade.
Start by sizing cost and leverage
If you are still deciding whether the matter is worth legal action, these tools provide a first estimate.
Dispute Cost Calculator
Estimate arbitration fees, legal fees, timeline and key risk factors for a supplier dispute.
Arbitration Cost Comparator
Compare CIETAC, ICC, SIAC and HKIAC fees across different dispute amounts.
Supplier Verification Checklist
Check entity, chop, bank account, contract, inspection and compliance before paying.
Existing practical guides
These articles are organized around real buyer problems and create the deeper internal-link path for this topic.
Before payment and contract terms
10 02
Before You Pay a Chinese Supplier, Check These 10 Things
Before sending a deposit to a Chinese supplier, confirm the legal entity, company chop, bank account, contract, arbitration clause, inspection terms, and compliance screening. Many sourcing disputes start with one skipped check.
That Contract Clause You Ignored Could Cost You Everything
Five commonly overlooked clauses in Chinese supply contracts and why they decide the outcome of cross-border disputes. Arbitration, inspection periods, governing law, penalties, IP protection.
Quality, deposits and silence
01 03
Your Chinese Supplier Shipped Defective Goods — Now What?
A practical guide for foreign buyers dealing with defective goods from Chinese suppliers. Steps to take immediately, from preserving evidence to arbitration.
Your Chinese supplier went silent after you paid the deposit. Now what?
Paid a deposit to a Chinese factory and now they won't respond? A practical guide to getting your money back, from demand letters to government complaints.
Evidence and arbitration
05 04
How to Prepare Evidence That Actually Holds Up in Chinese Arbitration
From inspection deadlines to WeChat records, from third-party testing to adverse inferences: evidence preparation in supply chain arbitration requires more discipline than most buyers realize.
Arbitration in China Is Less Scary Than You Think (and Probably Cheaper Too)
A practitioner's breakdown of China arbitration for foreign buyers: real enforcement rates, actual costs, CIETAC procedures, and the institutional safeguards most people don't know exist.
Design, NNN and tooling
Tariffs and cost allocation
Send the facts. I will help you choose the next move.
A 30-minute triage focuses on facts, evidence, amount, supplier location and enforceability. You should leave knowing whether to negotiate, send a letter, preserve assets, arbitrate, or stop spending.
Get a 30-minute case triage