China Pushes for Increase in Online Dispute Resolution as It Reboots Economy

Beijing. Photo: Shutterstock.com

As China slowly sends people back to work in an effort to reboot its economy, the government is advising dispute resolution organizations across the country to bolster their online dispute resolution efforts as it anticipates an increase in domestic disputes emerging from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Ministry of Justice issued a guideline on Mar. 3 calling for the accelerated development of China's "internet arbitration systems." The guideline emphasizes the importance of online dispute resolution, or ODR, for achieving its goal of getting the economy back on track while still maintaining control over the spread of COVID-19.

China's economy ground to a halt beginning in January as the world watched the coronavirus outbreak spread from Wuhan to other parts of the country. But now the tables have turned, and China is looking to revitalize its economy just as other countries across the globe are all but shutting down and imposing tight restrictions on their people. China has seen more than 80,000 confirmed cases, but the number of new cases has dropped significantly in recent days, with no new local infections reported Wednesday for the first time since the coronavirus crisis began. Still, there is a fear that the numbers could rise again as people return to work.