'The Belt and Road' and Cross-Border Judicial Cooperation

The Belt and Road Initiative (B&R) is aimed at fostering “peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit” among Asia, Europe and Africa, with China as a hub. It is expected to improve connectivity and increase cross-border civil and commercial activities of companies and individuals in this region. The success of B&R requires improving certainty and predictability for cross-border players by removing legal obstacles generated by the existence of different legal and judicial systems. This article proposes the judicial cooperation approach over harmonisation, explains how a properly developed judicial cooperation scheme could assist the success of the B&R initiative and which method is most effective in improving judicial cooperation in this region. The article's recommendations draw on a survey and comparative study of cross-border judicial cooperation in 69 B&R countries in applicable law, jurisdiction, judicial assistance and judgment enforcement. It reveals that judicial cooperation between B&R countries is achieved partially through international treaties, partially by bilateral agreements and mostly through unilateral domestic law. The status quo is extremely complicated, piecemeal, unpredictable and largely ineffective. After analysing the pros and cons of international, bilateral and national approaches, this article suggests that the most effective way to improve judicial cooperation between B&R countries is an informal, China-led, regional approach. China would act as a role model, a facilitator, a dispute centre and a sign-poster in this process