[{"title":"Shall Not Be Recognised, Enforced, or Complied With: What a Chinese Blocking Order Actually Does","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-aef03362/","date":"2026-05-06","categories":["Sanctions & Compliance"],"tags":["Sanctions","Blocking Statute","Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law","Cross-Border Compliance"],"content":"On the evening of 2 May, MOFCOM Announcement No. 21 of 2026 spread quickly across compliance channels. Targeting U.S. SDN designations of five Chinese enterprises including Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian), the announcement issued a blocking order — requiring domestic actors not to recognise, enforce, …"},{"title":"Commercial Mediation Regulation in Force 1 May 2026: New Options for Enterprises, Seen Through Two Xiamen Cases","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-72238597/","date":"2026-05-01","categories":["Foreign-Related Law"],"tags":["Commercial Mediation","Cross-Border Law","Maritime Law","Dispute Resolution"],"content":"The Regulation on Commercial Mediation (State Council Order No. 827), comprising 33 articles, takes effect on 1 May 2026. It is China’s first unified administrative regulation devoted to commercial mediation, signalling a shift from “scattered local practice” to a market-based, standardised national …"},{"title":"Enforcing Foreign Arbitral Awards in China: The Respondent's Procedural Rights and Defence Playbook","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-aca083d2/","date":"2026-02-19","categories":["International Arbitration"],"tags":["International Arbitration","New York Convention","Enforcement","Article V Defences"],"content":"When a foreign arbitral award is sought to be recognised and enforced in China, the respondent is entitled by law to raise procedural defences. Article V of the New York Convention sets out seven statutory grounds; their purpose is not to obstruct enforcement but to ensure the procedural propriety …"},{"title":"Setting Up a Foreign-Invested Enterprise in China: A Full-Process Guide and the Role of Counsel","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-2839898b/","date":"2026-01-17","categories":["Foreign-Related Law"],"tags":["Foreign Investment","FIE Setup","Cross-Border Law","Xiamen"],"content":"Over the past year, our team has assisted more than a dozen foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) with their establishment in Xiamen. Many foreign investors remain uncertain about market-access rules and procedural requirements: some spend three months merely preparing materials, while others see …"},{"title":"China's Commercial Mediation Regulation Takes Effect on 1 May 2026: A Practical Guide for Enterprises","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-8561b8fa/","date":"2026-01-09","categories":["Foreign-Related Law"],"tags":["Commercial Mediation","Cross-Border Law","Singapore Convention","Dispute Resolution"],"content":"China’s commercial mediation regime has reached a milestone. On 31 December 2025, the State Council issued the Regulation on Commercial Mediation (Order No. 827), the first administrative regulation devoted specifically to commercial mediation. The Regulation, consisting of 33 articles, takes effect …"},{"title":"China Officially Promulgates the Regulation on Commercial Mediation","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-10ad5641/","date":"2026-01-06","categories":["Foreign-Related Law"],"tags":["Commercial Mediation","Cross-Border Law","Dispute Resolution"],"content":"The Regulation on Commercial Mediation (the “Regulation”) was adopted by the State Council Executive Meeting on 19 December 2025 and will take effect on 1 May 2026. It is China’s first administrative regulation dedicated exclusively to commercial mediation, marking a new stage of standardisation and …"},{"title":"Goods Held Hostage by a Shipowner: How the Maritime Injunction Provides a Way Out","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-3d7c0276/","date":"2025-12-05","categories":["Maritime Law"],"tags":["Maritime Law","Maritime Injunction","Cargo Detention","Cross-Border Law"],"content":"A shipment of imported timber worth several million RMB arrives at a Chinese port. The consignee is told: because the time-charterer has defaulted on hire, the owner has cancelled the charter, and the consignee must now pay USD 3,000 per container as “ransom” to take delivery. Sixty containers sit …"},{"title":"Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards in China: Procedure, Pitfalls and Authorities","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-3f94ca00/","date":"2025-11-27","categories":["International Arbitration"],"tags":["International Arbitration","New York Convention","Enforcement","Cross-Border Law"],"content":"Step 1 — Confirm Enforceability Action. Before launching the application, verify the following: (i) the seat of arbitration is in a New York Convention contracting state (currently 172 members); (ii) the dispute is “commercial” (sale of goods, construction contracting, technology transfer, joint …"},{"title":"Ad Hoc Arbitration in Foreign-Related Contracts under the 2026 Arbitration Law","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-5cceb945/","date":"2025-10-07","categories":["International Arbitration"],"tags":["International Arbitration","Ad Hoc Arbitration","Cross-Border Contracts","Free Trade Zones"],"content":"On 12 September 2025, the Standing Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress passed the revised Arbitration Law of the PRC, taking effect on 1 March 2026. This is the first substantial revision of the Arbitration Law since its enactment in 1994. The most significant breakthrough is the formal …"},{"title":"Legal Weapons for Sanctioned Chinese Enterprises: Lessons from China's First Anti-Foreign-Sanctions Tort Action","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-7f1604a7/","date":"2025-09-11","categories":["Sanctions & Compliance"],"tags":["Sanctions","Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law","OFAC","Tort Litigation"],"content":"When a Chinese enterprise is placed on a foreign sanctions list, counterparties increasingly invoke “compliance” to freeze payments, suspend supply, or refuse performance. Many enterprises assume the situation is hopeless. In fact, since the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law (AFSL) took effect in 2021, and …"},{"title":"My Ship Is Earning — and I'm Not Getting Paid: Asserting the Rights of a Ship's Fractional Co-Owner","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-8bd60212/","date":"2025-09-09","categories":["Maritime Law"],"tags":["Maritime Law","Ship Co-Ownership","Partnership Disputes","Civil Litigation"],"content":"You invest substantial capital with others to buy a vessel, with one party agreed to handle operations. The expectation is shared participation in the shipping cycle. Years — sometimes more than a decade — pass; the operator cites weak markets and high costs, and you never receive a full set of …"},{"title":"Counter-Sanctions Series | Sanctioned Counterparty — Can the Contract Still Be Performed?","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-a602ef78/","date":"2025-06-25","categories":["Sanctions & Compliance"],"tags":["Sanctions","OFAC","Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law","Cross-Border Contracts"],"content":"Several enquiries lately raise the same question: a long-standing foreign counterparty is suddenly placed on a U.S. sanctions list. The goods have shipped, the works are done, but the balance cannot be paid. Sometimes the foreign company itself is sanctioned; sometimes an upstream supplier has been …"},{"title":"Cross-Border Employment: Thailand Labour Costs, Overtime and Compliance Recommendations","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-1c1e172f/","date":"2025-05-20","categories":["Cross-Border Employment"],"tags":["Cross-Border Employment","Labor Law","Thailand","Compliance"],"content":"I. Executive Summary Thailand’s labour-cost environment combines complexity with opportunity. The main cost drivers are statutory minimum wages, mandatory benefits (including the soon-to-take-effect Employee Welfare Fund), regulated overtime premiums, and statutory severance pay. Strict compliance …"},{"title":"The EU Forced Labour Products Regulation: Implications for Chinese Enterprises","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-28005b80/","date":"2025-03-23","categories":["Sanctions & Compliance"],"tags":["Trade Compliance","Forced Labour","EU Regulation","Supply Chain"],"content":"I. Understanding the EU Forced Labour Products Regulation 1. Definition of “forced labour”. The International Labour Organization (ILO) defines forced labour as “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself …"},{"title":"Labour Law in Southeast Asia: A Country Overview and Comparison with Chinese Law","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-dd1f7e1e/","date":"2025-03-20","categories":["Cross-Border Employment"],"tags":["Cross-Border Employment","Labor Law","Southeast Asia","Comparative Law"],"content":"1. Country-by-Country Overview 1.1 Vietnam Principal statute. Bộ Luật Lao Động (Labour Code), 2019 revision. Key features. Employment contracts come in fixed-term and indefinite-term forms; standard working time is up to 48 hours per week, with overtime premium pay; statutory social insurance, …"},{"title":"Trading With Sanctioned States and Entities: Impacts and Compliance Recommendations for Chinese Enterprises","url":"https://xiaoxionglegal.com/en/posts/wechat-8b333d7f/","date":"2025-01-01","categories":["Sanctions & Compliance"],"tags":["Sanctions","Trade Compliance","OFAC","Cross-Border Law"],"content":"International sanctions, typically imposed by the UN, the United States, the European Union or other states, are intended to preserve international peace and security, suppress terrorism and transnational crime, and protect human rights. For Chinese enterprises engaged in global trade, dealings with …"}]