Ping Xiong

Chinese Legal Culture and Legal Pluralism in Foreign Commercial Dispute Handling: An Exploratory Analysis

In recent years, China’s ‘Go Global’ policy has encouraged Chinese companies to go abroad to invest; inevitably this increased investment activity has generated a range of tensions and commercial disputes. The legal cultures that have shaped the mind-sets of parties to these commercial disputes will affect the choice of different dispute resolution methods. Recent Chinese investment in Australia has also grown significantly in areas such as mining, agriculture and real estate; as a result of cultural differences, the economic engagement between Australia and China will inevitably involve some degree of negotiation, disagreement and conflict. This leads us to examine the impact that legal culture has on dispute resolution practices found in Chinese companies operating in Australia. This exploratory analysis draws upon theories of globalization and legal culture and discusses Chinese legal culture and its impact on commercial disputes involving Chinese companies operating in Australia.