The Primary People’s Court of Qianhai Cooperation Zone (Qianhai Court) held a press conference on Dec. 25 to announce the release of a series of books on the research of legal rules alignment in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), along with a white paper on foreign-related rule of law.
According to Ci Yunxi, vice president of Qianhai Court, and Xie Wen, deputy director of the Trial Management Office at Qianhai Court, this series of books represents the latest interim achievement of the court in its efforts to promote research on the alignment of cross-border commercial legal rules. Drawing from the court’s experiences with foreign, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan-related commercial trials, the series consists of three volumes that tackle three significant topics in judicial practice: corporate law, private lending, and litigation rules.
The series also conducts comparative analyses and empirical research based on the legal frameworks of the mainland and Hong Kong, covering both litigation rules and substantive laws. Presented in a Chinese-English bilingual format, the books highlight the similarities and differences between the statutory laws and judicial judgments of the mainland and Hong Kong in a checklist format. This effectively bridges the information gap in commercial law within the GBA and provides guidance for commercial entities engaged in cross-border investment.
During the conference, Ma Zhanju, a full-time member of the Trial Committee of Qianhai Court, introduced the contents and highlights of the Chinese-English bilingual version of the white paper.
The white paper elaborates on the basic situation and characteristics of foreign-related commercial cases handled by Qianhai Court, as well as key achievements in promoting the establishment of a robust legal environment for foreign-related matters. It focuses on Qianhai Court’s significant accomplishments over the past decade in exercising its judicial functions, striving to create an optimal venue for foreign-related commercial trials, and promoting Qianhai’s high-level opening up.
According to statistics included in the white paper, from February 2015 to November 2024, Qianhai Court accepted 21,819 commercial cases involving Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and foreign countries, of which 13,992 cases were related to Hong Kong. Cases involved a total of 143 countries and regions, including the United States, Germany, Japan, and Russia, covering 263 causes of action such as private lending, sales contracts, and freight forwarding contracts, with a total case value amounting to 58.53 billion yuan (US$8.02 billion).
At the press conference, the Qianhai Court announced its commitment to continue deepening reforms, strengthening the foreign-related rule of law, and providing robust judicial guarantees for high-quality integrated development and enhanced openness in the GBA.