Online Dispute Resolution in China: Institutional Analysis and Legal Practice

This book provides an up-to-date and comprehensive institutional analysis of online dispute resolution (ODR), with a focus on the developments in China as well as their doctrinal and practical implications globally.

In the book, a wide range of ODR mechanisms, including online arbitration, online litigation, online mediation, crowdsourced ODR, and blockchain escrow services and more, are thoroughly examined and compared through an original analytical framework that highlights the evolutionary trajectories of dispute resolution in the digital era. The author leverages several empirical studies and her experience working with the Supreme People’s Court on formulating the rules for online courts. She presents an insightful, panoramic overview of ODR practices across Chinese courts, arbitration commissions, and online businesses, including detailed case studies and critical analyses of major digital platforms such as Taobao and the internet courts, which informs not only a new conception of justice adapted to the internet society but also different developmental paths for both established and emerging methods of ODR.

This book will appeal to scholars, practitioners and policymakers with an interest in online dispute resolution, online courts, law and technology, as well as digital platforms and the internet economy.

Wei Gao is Associate Professor at Peking University Law School. Her main research interests are in international economic law, arbitration, and the intersection of technology with law. She has published extensively in English, Chinese, and German.