Companies Avoid HK For Dispute Resolution Over Security Law

Lawyers say companies are increasingly hesitant to choose Hong Kong as a location for arbitration due to concerns over the legal and political environment in the city, which is covered by Beijing’s National Security Law, Pak Yiu and Echo Wong reported for Nikkei Asia.

Photo Insert: Corporate lawyers are reluctant to bring their cases to Hong Kong as the city’s legal environment is controlled by Beijing.

Concerns over the rule of law are threatening Hong Kong's ambitions to become a hub for corporate arbitration, according to lawyers, stoking the appeal of regional rival Singapore for many multinationals.

Corporate lawyers are reluctant to bring their cases to Hong Kong as the city’s legal environment is controlled by Beijing.

The Chinese city still handles hundreds of arbitration cases each year. However, companies drafting new contracts are increasingly choosing places other than Hong Kong as the location for arbitration, a dozen lawyers and corporate advisers in Hong Kong, Singapore, and London told Nikkei Asia.

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