On March 1, 2026 — the first day China’s newly revised Arbitration Law took effect — Hainan completed the country’s first ad hoc arbitration case filed under the new legal framework. The case was filed, heard, and ruled upon all within a single day, in the city of Wenchang.

The Case

The dispute involved a collision between a foreign-flagged ultra-large oil tanker and a Chinese-registered small vessel. After the incident, the Hainan Maritime Bureau activated its “Maritime Dispute Multi-Resolution Center” emergency response, conducting an accident investigation, determining liability, and preserving key evidence including vessel navigation tracks and collision scene data.

The Maritime Bureau then guided both parties to understand the advantages of ad hoc arbitration under Hainan’s Free Trade Port framework — particularly its flexibility, efficiency, and cross-border enforceability. Both parties voluntarily agreed to resolve the dispute through ad hoc arbitration.

How It Worked

The Hainan Provincial Arbitration Association played a central coordination role:

  • Procedural guidance. The Association provided application guidance under the Hainan Free Trade Port Ad Hoc Arbitration Rules and recommended a qualified sole arbitrator with maritime expertise and international arbitration experience.
  • Logistics support. The Association provided standardized hearing facilities and professional arbitration secretary services.
  • Streamlined process. Evidence exchange procedures were simplified to maximize efficiency.

The result: the entire arbitration — from filing to final ruling — was completed in a single day, setting an unprecedented “same-day filing, same-day ruling” record.

Preparation: The Filing Guidelines

This wasn’t improvised. On February 6, 2026 — nearly a month before the law took effect — the Hainan Arbitration Association had already released its Interim Guidelines for Ad Hoc Arbitration Case Filing (《海南省仲裁协会临时仲裁案件备案指引（试行）》). These guidelines established:

  • Filing entity: The presiding arbitrator or sole arbitrator is responsible for filing.
  • Filing deadline: Must be completed within 3 business days of the tribunal’s formation.
  • Filing materials: Include a standardized filing form and evidence of tribunal composition.
  • Review process: The Association conducts a formal review and issues a filing receipt within 2 business days.

This advance preparation enabled seamless Day One execution when the new law took effect.

Earlier Milestone: Singapore-Hainan Cross-Border Case

In fact, the first ad hoc arbitration case in Hainan had already been completed on February 27, 2026 — before the new law even took effect — under existing Hainan Free Trade Port rules. That case involved a Singapore company and a Hainan company that had originally agreed to arbitrate in Singapore. After guidance from the Haikou Maritime Court’s Yangpu branch, both parties voluntarily chose to use Hainan’s ad hoc arbitration framework instead, making it the first cross-border commercial ad hoc arbitration case to “flow back” from overseas to Hainan.

Other Day-One Milestones

On the same day (March 1), two additional milestones were recorded elsewhere:

  • Lingang FTZ, Shanghai: CMAC’s Shanghai headquarters served as the “designated institution” for an ad hoc arbitration case between two shipping companies — a freight fee dispute resolved in 7 days.
  • North Bund, Shanghai (虹口北外滩): A maritime insurance ad hoc arbitration case was completed within two weeks.

What This Means for Foreign Businesses

Ad hoc arbitration is a fundamental shift for China:

  • Previously impossible. Before the revised law, China only recognized institutional arbitration. Ad hoc arbitration — where parties appoint their own arbitrators and set their own rules — was not legally recognized. Now it is, with specific conditions.
  • Who can use it. For now, ad hoc arbitration under the new law is available for:
    • Foreign-related maritime disputes — anywhere in China
    • Foreign-related disputes between companies registered in State Council-approved Free Trade Zones (Hainan, Lingang, Hengqin, Nansha, and others)
  • Speed advantage. The Hainan case was resolved in a single day. The Lingang case in 7 days. Compare this to average timelines of 85 days at SCIA or 6+ months for complex CIETAC cases.
  • Cross-border enforceability. The SPC’s work report explicitly mentions supporting Hainan courts in “connecting with ad hoc arbitration institutional innovation,” suggesting judicial support for enforcement.
  • Practical limitation. Your company must be registered in an eligible FTZ to use this option for non-maritime disputes.

Action item: If your China subsidiary is registered in a Free Trade Zone (particularly Hainan, Lingang, or Hengqin), consult your legal counsel about whether ad hoc arbitration clauses should be considered for future contracts. The speed and cost advantages are significant.