“Mediation offers flexible procedures and lower costs, making it particularly suitable for cross-border disputes. It can help you avoid lengthy litigation and resume normal trade operations as soon as possible." Recently, facing a private lending dispute involving an Australian party with a claim amount exceeding 4 million yuan, mediators from the Guangxi International Civil and Commercial Mediation Center patiently explained the advantages of mediation to both parties.

　　Subsequently, the center collaborated closely with the Yongning District People's Court in Nanning. After multiple rounds of communication, coordination, and thorough legal interpretation, both parties ultimately reached a mediation agreement. The Yongning District Court completed the judicial confirmation review in just three days, issuing a civil ruling that granted the agreement enforceable legal effect. From court-assigned mediation to final judicial confirmation, the entire process took only five days.

　　The swift resolution of this dispute vividly exemplifies Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region's recent efforts to establish itself as a preferred destination for resolving foreign-related commercial disputes.

As China's frontier for opening up to ASEAN, Guangxi leverages its unique geographical advantages and continuously deepening opening-up policies to foster increasingly frequent economic and trade exchanges and fruitful regional cooperation. However, as the scale of cross-border trade expands, transnational commercial frictions and disputes have also increased.

　　Mediation, based on voluntary participation, offers more flexible and efficient procedures, making it particularly suitable for transnational commercial disputes. Yet a key challenge remains: how to ensure parties genuinely “understand and trust mediation”?

　　“From the very beginning of our preparations, addressing this core issue has been a key guiding principle in our institutional development,” explained Pan Haiqing, head of the Guangxi International Civil and Commercial Mediation Center, to Legal Daily. Established in December 2022 under the coordination of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Department of Justice, the center became China's first provincial-level international civil and commercial mediation institution overseen by a judicial administrative body.

　　Jointly initiated by the Guangxi Lawyers Association, Guangxi Notary Association, and Guangxi Arbitration Association, the center is dedicated to providing professional commercial mediation services for disputes involving ASEAN countries and exploring diversified international commercial dispute resolution mechanisms.

　　Professional talent is crucial to the credibility of international mediation. According to Pan Haiqing, the center rigorously selects mediators based on arbitrator standards, prioritizing professionals with cross-jurisdictional backgrounds. Recruitment is tailored to case characteristics and partner organization needs. For instance, to support the Nanning Intermediate People's Court in handling cases involving Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, the center specifically selected mediators from Hong Kong and Macao to precisely meet judicial practice requirements.

　　Currently, the center has assembled a specialized mediation team of 152 members, including senior lawyers and academic experts. Implementing a tiered management model, the team comprehensively covers mediation needs for all types of international civil and commercial disputes.

      “In over two years since its establishment, the center has handled more than 1,300 domestic and international commercial disputes involving 13 countries, including Vietnam and Malaysia. It has effectively resolved a number of cross-border disputes, earning increasing recognition and trust from international parties,” " said Pan Haiqing.

       In June this year, a dispute over a mobile phone screen sales contract between a Bangladeshi businessman and a Chinese businessman was successfully resolved through collaborative mediation by the Guangxi International Civil and Commercial Mediation Center and the Nanning International Commercial Court. The case involved multiple intertwined issues, complex circumstances, and significant communication barriers due to language and cultural differences between the parties, making mediation particularly challenging.

　　To address this, the center leveraged its “One-Stop Integrated Resolution Platform for Foreign-Related Civil and Commercial Disputes” by appointing mediators well-versed in international trade rules to preside over the mediation. Simultaneously, industry experts were brought in to provide practical trade interpretations. This innovative “commercial mediation + industry assistance” approach helped both parties clarify the dispute's focal points and weigh their respective interests and losses. Ultimately, the parties reached a comprehensive settlement agreement regarding payment and goods disposition. This case was successfully selected for inclusion in the second batch of typical foreign-related commercial and maritime mediation cases released by the Supreme People's Court.

　　The successful resolution of this case exemplifies the outcomes of Guangxi's efforts to establish an integrated multi-tiered dispute resolution mechanism seamlessly linking mediation, arbitration, and litigation. In recent years, Guangxi has continuously deepened international judicial cooperation, innovatively applied “Eastern experience” to resolve cross-border disputes, promoted “soft connectivity” in international judicial rules, and strived to become a preferred destination for resolving foreign-related commercial disputes within the ASEAN region.