Are you looking into lawsuits in Beijing? Chances are that you want to file a lawsuit in China. Before we talk about how to do it, make sure you are serious.

If you want to speak to a lawyer in China, contact us or reach out to a legal consultant on Wechat: alistairvigier

The legal system in Beijing can be an overwhelming and complicated experience, especially for foreigners. Despite recent reforms that have made the legal system more accessible, foreigners still face obstacles when dealing with a legal disputes. Understanding the legal system, working with an experienced lawyer, and considering the role of mediation can help foreigners navigate the legal system in Beijing.

The Legal System in Beijing

China’s legal system is based on a civil law system, where judges follow written laws and have limited discretion compared to common law systems. The Chinese Communist Party exercises control over the judiciary, which can affect how cases are handled. To start a lawsuit in Beijing, a plaintiff must file a complaint with the appropriate court.

District courts usually handle civil disputes, while more complicated cases are heard by intermediate or higher courts. The court will then issue a summons to the defendant, who must respond to the complaint within a specific period.

Working with an Experienced Lawyer

Navigating lawsuits in Beijing is challenging, and it’s crucial to work with an experienced lawyer. The legal system’s complexities make it hard for non-lawyers to handle a case effectively. An experienced lawyer can protect one’s rights and handle the case professionally and efficiently.

Choosing a lawyer who specializes in the specific area of law related to the case is vital. Also, the lawyer should be familiar with the Chinese legal system and communicate effectively in both Chinese and English.

The Role of Mediation

Mediation is a voluntary process where a neutral third party helps the parties to find a mutually acceptable solution to the dispute outside the court. In many cases, mediation can be a faster and less expensive way to resolve a dispute than going to court.

The courts in Beijing often encourage mediation before proceeding to trial, and they may require parties to attempt mediation before the case can proceed. An experienced lawyer in mediation can be an asset when navigating lawsuits in Beijing.

Navigating lawsuits in Beijing is a challenging task, especially for foreigners who may not be familiar with the Chinese legal system. Understanding the legal system, working with an experienced lawyer, and considering the role of mediation can help foreigners navigate the legal system in Beijing.

With China’s legal system becoming more transparent, foreigners can expect more opportunities for justice and fairness in the legal system.

Navigating lawsuits in Beijing

It is very possible to hire a lawyer or attorney to file a claim in China. Our lawyers are litigation experts.

However, it’s going to cost you a lot of money. This is true of lawsuits in China, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

We get a lot of people contacting us wanting to file lawsuits. However, the first question we ask is, can you afford it?

Only after we have confirmed you have the funds will we connect you to a Chinese lawyer for a consultation.

Some people assume the law firm is going to pay for all the witness fees, flights, hotels, court fees, and expert reports.

Also do not count on class action lawsuits. They are very complicated.

Do You Have A Valid Claim?

Who can you sue in Beijing? You can file a lawsuit against a person or company.

Since you now know lawsuits are expensive, make sure there is a lot of money at stake.

Let’s use an example. Let’s say you run a company in Australia that sells toys.

The toys you sell are the popular “Hairdorables” child’s toys. Let’s say they are made in a factory in Beijing.

Lawsuits In Beijing

You order $200,000 worth of Hairdorables from the factory. However, one of two things happen.

You don’t receive the shipment
The shipment does not meet your standards

Below is a list of some different types of lawsuits that can be filed.

Regarding inheritance battles
Lawsuits over contracts
Divorce lawsuits are common in Beijing
Lawsuits over real estate
Litigation over child custody
When one company owes money to another
One person owes money to another
Personal injury claims
Employment law (employee is fired in an unfair way)
Sexual abuse or discrimination

Holding The Beijing Company Accountable

Continuing with our example above, do not assume that you cannot hold the company accountable.

You will want to first talk to them yourself without a lawyer. But let’s say you are getting nowhere.

Are you out $200,000? That’s up to you.

The first step that an attorney in China might do is to send a demand letter for payment for the products.

This will hopefully get you what you want without having much cost. However, sometimes multiple demand letters must be sent.

If not, the lawyer will likely have to say that you are planning to file a lawsuit in Beijing very soon.

If they don’t get back to you, the lawyer will file the claim.

Lawsuits In Beijing, How Long Will It Take?

Lawsuits take time. They can go on for months or years. It is not like the movies where the lawsuit takes five minutes.

There are pleadings, which go on for a while. Both sides need to write out all the facts that they agree or disagree on.

Further, both sides will discuss which laws should apply to the case.

One side might file some paperwork to try and get the lawsuit thrown out quickly.

If the defence doesn’t respond, then the person filing the lawsuit might try to win automatically.

After that, there is the discovery stage. Both sides will exchange their evidence.

Lawsuits Against A Chinese Company Or Person

Are you looking into lawsuits against a Chinese company or person? Maybe you are located in Canada, New Zealand, or Australia.

If you decide you want to file a lawsuit in China’s courts, you are going to need a good lawyer located in China.

You cannot use a lawyer in New Zealand or England.

Every year, many companies do business with companies or people located in China. As is the case with any business relationship, things can fall apart.

People break contracts and damages happen. Many people try to avoid the courts in China by signing arbitration agreements.

Or at the minimum, they have a clause in the business contract that says that the parties would agree to arbitration in Singapore if there are issues.

But will Chinese courts enforce foreign court orders or arbitration orders?

If you need to file a lawsuit or defend a lawsuit, contact us. Lawyers can also help with international arbitration.

Lawsuits Against A Chinese Company And Why It Matters

Understanding the civil litigation system in China is important if you want to do business in China, and not get into trouble.

Lawsuits against a Chinese company are part of doing business in China. China’s legal system was first created by the Soviet Union.

China uses civil law, not common law (British.)

In China, there is only one trial, and one possibility for an appeal. After you go through two levels of trial, the legal matter is finished.

National disputes are dealt with at the Supreme Court level.

Provincial issues are dealt with at the “High Court” level. And the “basic courts” and intermediate courts deal with city issues.

The Supreme People’s Court only deals with legal disputes $40 million dollars and up.

Filing Lawsuits In China

There are also a lot of lawsuits right now because times are tough. With COVID-19 and trade wars, people have more time to focus on lawsuits.

If business was going very well, they would likely want to focus on growing their business.

Lawsuits can be very profitable for businesses, but they are stressful and take up time.

A Chinese court will often not enforce court orders outside the country.

Therefore, if the person or company you are suing has assets (property and cash) in China, don’t waste your time filing the lawsuit in Australia.

If you get the court order in Australia, it will be worthless in China.

You will need to hire a lawyer, ideally, one of ours, to do research into where the company’s assets are, and where they are registered.

Don’t assume a company is registered in China. Your lawyer needs to do a lot of research before filing the lawsuit.

This is true for company lawsuits, divorce, or personal injury cases.

China signed the Hague Convention. Therefore, you can try and bring foreign judgments, but it’s very hard to do.

Where Should The Lawsuit Be Filed?

When you want to figure out where to sue someone, you should first look at the contract you signed.

You will look for a clause that says where a dispute would be heard. It might say, “Any disputes would be heard in the courts of Beijing.”

This is called a Forum Selection Clause.

If the contract says you will use arbitration in Australia, that’s what you should do. There might be ways around the forum selection clause.

However, if someone files a lawsuit in the wrong place, you can file a jurisdictional response. As you can see, the legal terms are not very user-friendly.

They have complicated names, and even more complicated forms.

If the contract doesn’t say that the dispute would be dealt with by arbitration, but you want it to be, the other side will need to agree.

Lawsuits In Beijing Against A Chinese Company

You will need to prepare a strong case. The judges might have an easier time understanding the Chinese company.

This is why it’s so important that you get legal advice from a lawyer in China. We know a lot of ways to save you money and time with lawsuits.

The Chinese courts will often have no problem accepting international issues to be heard in their courts.

China wants to have power over decisions made globally.

In short, it’s much better to file a lawsuit directly in China, than to try to enforce a foreign order. It will save you time and money.

China is a complex place to do business.

Michael Jordan filed a large lawsuit against a company in China (in China’s courts) over the use of his trademark by a sports company.

The legal industry in China is pretty new. In the 1980s, China opened law schools and created the Ministry of Justice.

The legal industry, therefore, is only 40 years old. And around 2001, the legal market really started to grow.

Chinese companies started to do business internationally, and they needed legal advice to deal with foreign companies and governments.

Companies in other parts of the world also needed legal advice when they came to China. The legal system is quickly growing to support demand growth.

Lawsuits Against A China Company

Here is how the legal system works in China. The National Peoples Congress is the highest body of law in China.

Under them are the judicial system and the legislative system. The state council serves as a bridge to the local governments.

The highest court system is called the Supreme Court. Underneath them is the High Courts. The lowest level is called the basic courts.

It seems that lawsuits between Chinese and American companies are becoming more common.

Fineprint, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, just filed a lawsuit against Apple.

We don’t have lawyers in the United States, but we do have lawyers in Canada.

Lawsuits In Beijing

If you are a Chinese company that wants to file a lawsuit in Canada, we can help you. We have lawyers and paralegals in Vancouver and Toronto.

The Apple and Fineprint lawsuit is massive. It’s for $1.4 billion in damages.

The AI company has demanded that Apple stop using Siri, as they claim it’s their own intellectual property.

It shows that the tech companies in China and the USA will continue to sue each other.

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Navigating Lawsuits in Beijing: Your Ultimate Guide