Source: Key points of case judgment from "Gazette of the PRC Supreme People's Court" Volume 2022

Case Judgment Opinion Summary:

If the parties agree in the contract that in case of a dispute related to the contract, they can either bring a lawsuit to the people's court or apply to an arbitration institution for arbitration, the parties' agreement on arbitration shall be invalid. However, after a dispute occurs, if one party applies to the arbitration institution for arbitration, and the other party does not raise an objection and actually participates in the arbitration, it shall be deemed that both parties have reached a consensus on resolving the dispute through arbitration. The people's court shall not accept any subsequent lawsuit brought by both parties to the people's court for disputes related to the same contract; If the case has been accepted, the court shall rule to dismiss the lawsuit.