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20 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 421 (2005)
The Role of Conciliation in Resolving Disputes: A P.R.C. Perspective

handle is hein.journals/ohjdpr20 and id is 431 raw text is: The Role of Conciliation in Resolving Disputes: A P.R.C. Perspective WANG WENYING* I. INTRODUCTION Conciliation is the process by which the participants-together with the assistance of a neutral person or persons-systematically isolate disputed issues in order to develop options, consider alternatives, and reach a consensual settlement that will accommodate their needs.1 Conciliation has a long history in China because it emphasizes the necessity of avoiding conflict, observing proper rules of behavior, and relying on the social group to resolve differences,2 which are in conformity with Confucian standards and values.3 In China,4 conciliation can be divided into five categories: administrative conciliation, people's conciliation, conciliation conducted by permanent conciliation centers, conciliation conducted in the litigation process, and conciliation conducted in the arbitration process.5 At present, * SJD Candidate, Faculty of Law, University of Hong Kong; Member of Charted Institute of Arbitrators; Arbitrator of CIETAC; Conciliators of Conciliation Center of CCPIT/CCOIC; Research Fellow, Research Institute of Arbitration of CIETAC. 1 JAY FOLBERG & ALISON TAYLOR, MEDIATION: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO RESOLVING DISPUTES WITHOUT LITIGATION 7 (1996). The term mediation is often used interchangeably with conciliation; in this paper, the terms will be treated as synonymous. 2 STANLEY B. LUBMAN, BIRD IN A CAGE: LEGAL REFORM IN CHINA AFTER MAO 26 (1999). 3 The main Confucian values are praise of harmony, moderation in all things, concession or yielding, and avoidance of litigation. All those principles of Confucianism promoted a culture in which conciliation was considered to be the first resort of resolving disputes. In regards to Confucian philosophy, see generally Liu SHUXIAN, UNDERSTANDING CONFUCIAN PHILOSOPHY: CLASSICIAL AND SUN-MING (1998). 4 In this article, China is used interchangeably with the P.R.C. 5 The categories of Chinese conciliation may be different according to different criteria. For example, according to Wang Shengchang, conciliation in China may be divided into ad hoc conciliation, conciliation by permanent conciliation centers, joint conciliation by two conciliation centers, combination of arbitration and conciliation, and combination of conciliation and litigation. See WANG SHENCHANG, RESOLVING DISPUTES IN THE P.R.C.: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO ARBITRATION AND CONCILIATION IN CHINA 33 (1996). Conciliation in China is also divided into people's conciliation (minjian tiaojie), commercial conciliation (shangshi tiaojie), administrative conciliation (xingzheng tiaojie), and judicial conciliation (sifa tiaojie), including conciliation in litigation and conciliation in arbitration. See ZHONGGUO SHANGSHI TIAOJIE: LILUN YU SHIWU 421