The Guangdong-ASEAN Sister Cities Commercial Justice Forum, hosted by the Guangdong High People's Court, opened in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, on Oct 22.

Under the theme "Stabilizing Rule Expectations, Optimizing the Internationalized Business Environment," the forum brought together representatives from local courts in six ASEAN countries — Vietnam, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore — as well as from international arbitration institutions.

Mao Zhonghua, vice-president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC) of China; Ma Senshu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Guangdong Provincial Committee; Zhang Haibo, president of the Guangdong High People's Court; and Pham Quoc Hung, deputy chief justice of the Supreme People's Court of Vietnam and chief justice of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court, attended and addressed the opening ceremony.

The forum aimed to implement the consensus reached at the 4th ASEAN-China Justice Forum and establish a platform for exchanges and cooperation among local courts. It sought to support the development of a market-oriented, law-based and internationalized business environment and provide better judicial services and safeguards for regional economic and trade development.

Judges, arbitrators, experts and scholars from China and abroad held in-depth discussions on practical issues, including the principle of equal protection in foreign-related commercial adjudication, the application of foreign law and cross-border enforcement of judgments, regional judicial responses to developments in the digital age, and diversified mechanisms for resolving cross-border commercial disputes. Participants also visited the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court and the Guangzhou Internet Court.

On the sidelines of the forum, Mao met with a delegation from Vietnamese local courts, while Zhang met with a delegation from Indonesian local courts. Their discussions focused on deepening practical cooperation between Chinese courts and courts at all levels in ASEAN countries.

The Guangdong High People's Court released its first batch of typical cases involving commercial and maritime disputes related to ASEAN countries, highlighting judicial practices that help foster a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable business environment.

The court also launched an online platform for ascertaining foreign law. It contains 36,000 foreign laws and regulations, including civil and commercial laws and regulations from all 11 ASEAN countries.