Recently, 13 newly-appointed mediators accepted the offer and went on duty. Under the cooperation of Guangzhou Maritime Court and China Maritime Arbitration Commission, the working mechanism of admiralty dispute entrusting mediation is put into implementation officially.

President Ye Liudong of Guangzhou Maritime Court said, to improve the cohesive mechanism between litigation and non-litigation resolution of admiralty dispute, last August, Guangzhou Maritime Court and China Maritime Arbitration Commission signed a memorandum of cooperation on establishing a working mechanism of admiralty dispute entrusting arbitration and mediation and reached a consensus. To further ensure the standardization and normalization of the mechanism, promote the positive interaction between maritime judicature and maritime arbitration and to enhance the cooperation with China Maritime Arbitration Commission, both sides officially start to carry out the work of admiralty dispute entrusting mediation on the basis of the signed memorandum of cooperation.

President Ye Liudong of Guangzhou Maritime Court also pointed out that, the entrusting mediation mechanism will be able to give full play to the characteristics and advantages of the expert mediation mechanism, including the mediators’ extensive arbitration experience, comprehensive technologies, recognition of the shipping industry. The mechanism not only conforms with the actual need of the parties, but also effectively releases the pressure of the court in case handling and reasonably allocates the judicial resources. In 2018, Guangzhou Maritime Court will gradually increase the quantity of entrusting mediation cases and improve the litigation efficiency, so as to handle and solve more cases concerned maritime matters in a quick, convenient, fair and harmony way.