Full title: 49 existing court cases on invalidness of arbitration agreement - If there is ambiguity in the arbitration clause in the contract and both parties cannot reach a consensus, the arbitration clause shall be invalid (6)
Case 25. The contract stipulates that "disputes arising from the performance of this agreement or any disputes related to this agreement shall be resolved through consultation between both parties. If consultation fails, they shall be arbitrated in the people's court of the place where Party B is located." This is a situation where the arbitration agreement does not specify or clearly stipulates the arbitration matters or arbitration committee, and the arbitration agreement shall be deemed invalid.
Case Name: Wuhan Jianghua Wire and Cable Co., Ltd. and Governor General Art Engineering Technology (Hubei) Co., Ltd. Applying for Confirmation of the Validity of the Arbitration Agreement
Case number: (2019) E01 Minte 298
Reason for decision: According to Article 18 of the Arbitration Law of the China, "if the arbitration agreement does not stipulate or clearly stipulates the arbitration matters or the arbitration commission, the parties may supplement the agreement; if no supplementary agreement is reached, the arbitration agreement is invalid". In this case, the contract signed by both parties stipulates that "disputes arising from the performance of this agreement or any disputes related to this agreement shall be resolved through consultation between both parties. If consultation fails, they shall be arbitrated in the people's court where Party B is located." In accordance with the above legal provisions, the arbitration agreement shall be deemed invalid in accordance with the law.
Case 26. The dispute resolution method stipulated in the contract is to "file a lawsuit with the local arbitration commission in accordance with the law". If the specific direction of "local" is unclear and the specific arbitration institution cannot be determined, and both parties are unable to reach a supplementary agreement, the arbitration agreement shall be invalid.
Case Name: Application for Confirmation of the Validity of the Arbitration Agreement between the Applicant Wang Mougang and the Respondents Lei Mougang and Sun Mouxu
Case No.: (2020) Yu 01 Min Te No. 22
Reason for adjudication: Article 16 of the Arbitration Law of the China stipulates that an arbitration agreement includes the arbitration clauses concluded in the contract and the agreement reached in other written forms before or after the dispute. The arbitration agreement shall have the following contents: (1) the expression of intention to request arbitration; （2） Arbitration matters; （3） Selected arbitration committee. Article 18 stipulates that if there is no agreement or unclear agreement on the arbitration matters or the arbitration commission in the arbitration agreement, the parties may supplement the agreement; If a supplementary agreement cannot be reached, the arbitration agreement shall be invalid.
In this case, Article 17 of the "Housing Investment Contract" stipulates that the dispute resolution method is "to file a lawsuit with the local arbitration commission in accordance with the law". Due to the unclear specific direction of "local", the specific arbitration institution cannot be determined, and both parties are unable to reach a supplementary agreement, so the arbitration agreement is invalid.
Case 27. Whether the parties have reached an arbitration agreement or whether they can reach an agreement in the future should be explored from the context, system, and other aspects of the contract. The contract stipulates that "disputes can be resolved in the following ways", indicating that the parties have the option of dispute resolution and are not limited solely by the dispute resolution methods listed in the terms. If both parties fail to reach a consensus on arbitration, it shall be deemed that they have not reached an arbitration agreement.
Case Name: Wuyuan County Hongcheng Real Estate Development Co., Ltd. and Zhejiang Taipai Curtain Wall Doors and Windows Co., Ltd. Applying for Confirmation of the Validity of the Arbitration Agreement
Case No.: (2020) Gan 11 Min Te No. 7
Reason for Adjudication: If the parties adopt arbitration to resolve disputes, both parties shall voluntarily reach an arbitration agreement, and both parties agree that the meaning of arbitration shall be clear and exclusive. Whether the parties have reached an arbitration agreement or whether they can reach a consensus in the future should be explored from the context, system, and other aspects of the contract. In this case, the dispute clause in the "Contract" stipulates that "... disputes can be resolved in the following ways...", indicating that the parties have a selective approach to dispute resolution and are not limited solely by the dispute resolution methods listed in the clause. Therefore, the clause 'If negotiation or mediation fails, both parties shall reach an arbitration agreement,...' should be understood as' if coordination or mediation fails, if both parties reach an arbitration agreement, or if both parties choose to reach an arbitration agreement, the contract dispute can be resolved through arbitration. '. However, after the dispute occurred, both parties were unable to reach a consensus on arbitration, therefore, both parties have not yet reached an arbitration agreement.
Case 28. If a dispute arises as stipulated in the contract, both parties shall resolve it through consultation. If consultation fails, both parties agree to submit it to a local arbitration committee for resolution. This clause is only deemed to have agreed on the arbitration location, but no agreement has been made on the arbitration institution. If no supplementary agreement has been reached between the parties, the arbitration clause shall be invalid.
Case Name: Suzhou Haojie Property Management Co., Ltd. Application for Confirmation of the Validity of the Arbitration Agreement
Case No.: (2019) Su 05 Min Te No. 113
Reason for arbitration: The arbitration agreement shall contain the following contents: (1) an expression of intention to request arbitration; （2） Arbitration matters; （3） Selected arbitration committee. If there is no agreement or unclear agreement on the arbitration matters or the arbitration commission in the arbitration agreement, the parties may supplement the agreement; If a supplementary agreement cannot be reached, the arbitration agreement shall be invalid. In this case, Article 33 of the Suzhou Property Service Contract signed between Haojie Property Management Company and the Zhujiang New Town Industry Committee stipulates that "in case of any dispute during the performance of this contract, both parties shall settle it through consultation. If the consultation fails, both parties agree to settle it in the first way below. From the context, the first way in this clause can be understood as corresponding to the first way." Both parties have expressed their intention to request arbitration; However, the arbitration clause did not make a clear selection for submitting to the Suzhou Arbitration Commission or other arbitration committees, and both parties were unable to reach a supplementary agreement on the selection of the arbitration committee afterwards, so the arbitration clause is invalid.