On March 9, 2026, Supreme People’s Court President Zhang Jun delivered the SPC’s annual work report to the 14th National People’s Congress. The report contained several significant arbitration-related disclosures.
Key Numbers
| Metric | 2025 | Year-over-Year |
|---|---|---|
| Arbitration judicial review cases | 21,000 | +12.8% |
| Foreign award recognition & enforcement cases concluded | 108 | — |
| Total cases received by all Chinese courts | 37.49 million | +10.8% |
| Total cases concluded by all Chinese courts | 36.20 million | +8.9% |
| SPC cases received | 29,154 | -16.5% |
| SPC cases concluded | 31,958 | -1.8% |
This is the first time annual arbitration judicial review cases have exceeded 20,000.
SPC’s Arbitration-Related Priorities
The report described several specific arbitration-related actions taken in 2025:
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“Building China as a preferred forum for dispute resolution.” The SPC framed its arbitration policy within a broader push to make China a competitive venue for international commercial disputes, using this specific language in the report.
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One-stop international dispute resolution platform. The SPC’s International Commercial Court mediated 155 foreign-related cases through its integrated platform that connects litigation, mediation, and arbitration.
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Support for Hainan ad hoc arbitration. The report explicitly stated that “Hainan courts connected with the ad hoc arbitration institutional innovation” (海南法院对接临时仲裁制度创新), confirming judicial-level support for ad hoc arbitration enforcement in the Free Trade Port.
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Greater Bay Area cooperation. The SPC highlighted support for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to “jointly build an international commercial dispute resolution center.”
New Judicial Interpretation in Progress
The SPC confirmed it is actively drafting a comprehensive new judicial interpretation to accompany the revised Arbitration Law. Based on the earlier Annual Report on Arbitration Judicial Review (2024) published on December 28, 2025 — which featured 16 typical cases and explicitly called for an “arbitration-friendly” (仲裁友好型) judicial environment — the new interpretation is expected to address:
- The “seat of arbitration” (仲裁地) concept and its practical application under the new law
- Rules for ad hoc arbitration in Free Trade Zones and Hainan
- Jurisdiction over awards issued by foreign arbitration institutions operating in China (such as the ICC Court’s presence in Shanghai)
- Refined procedures for interim measures and preservation orders
- Shortened set-aside period — from 6 months to 3 months under the new law
What This Means for Foreign Businesses
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21,000 review cases means the system functions. Judicial review is how courts check whether awards were properly made. A high and growing volume signals that parties actively use — and trust — the enforcement mechanism.
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108 foreign award cases is a concrete track record. While the number is modest, it represents concluded cases where Chinese courts processed applications to recognize and enforce arbitral awards from other New York Convention jurisdictions. This is the metric that matters most for foreign businesses: can you actually enforce a foreign award in China?
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The new judicial interpretation is the single most important document to watch in 2026. Until the SPC issues this interpretation, there will be uncertainty about how courts apply the new law’s provisions on ad hoc arbitration, the seat concept, and interim measures. We will report on it when released.
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“Arbitration-friendly” is a deliberate signal. The SPC’s use of this term — borrowed from international arbitration discourse — is a message to foreign users: China wants your arbitration business. The SPC does not use such language accidentally.
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Shorter set-aside window helps winners. The reduction from 6 months to 3 months means losing parties have less time to file challenge proceedings against awards — resulting in faster finality for the winning party.
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Hainan ad hoc enforcement is judicially backed. The explicit mention of Hainan courts “connecting with” ad hoc arbitration innovation means the judiciary has been instructed to support enforcement of ad hoc awards. This reduces the enforcement risk that many foreign parties worry about.
Bottom line: The numbers confirm that China’s arbitration system is growing, the courts are cooperating, and the policy direction is clearly pro-arbitration. The outstanding question — how the SPC’s new judicial interpretation will work in practice — will define whether 2026 is a turning point for international arbitration in China.