On September 5, 2023, the 7th Tang Lecture organized by China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (“CIETAC”) was held in Beijing as one of the key activities of the China Arbitration Week. The event was attended by 150 guests from home and abroad, including heads of renowned domestic and foreign arbitration institutions, arbitrators, lawyers, scholars and members of the business communities.
This year’s Tang Lecture invited Prof. Wang Yi, Vice President of Renmin University of China, Executive Member of the China Law Society, Vice Chairperson and Secretary-general of Civil Law Research Association in the China Law Society, member and Secretary-general of the Leading Group of Civil Code Drafting of the China Law Society, and CIETAC arbitrator, to be the keynote speaker. The Tang Lecture also invited Mr. Rimsky K K Yuen, Senior Counsel and the former Secretary for Justice of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), as the commentator. Mr. Wang Chengjie, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of CIETAC, moderated the Tang Lecture and delivered an opening speech.
(Mr. Wang Chengjie, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of CIETAC, Moderated the Tang Lecture)
Secretary General Wang Chengjie pointed out in his opening speech that the Tang Lecture was established to commemorate Mr. Tang Houzhi, the prominent founder and pioneer of China's arbitration cause. Since its launch in 2017, the Tang Lecture, has always been aiming to publicize the concept of arbitration, promote cultural exchanges in international arbitration community, encourage the development of international arbitration and create a platform for international arbitration exchanges, and has become an important platform for domestic and international arbitration exchanges. In recent years, with the accelerated development of the digital economy, data had become an important factor of production, but the legal community had not yet reached a consensus on its legal attributes, attribution of rights and other issues, and relevant legal provisions are lacking as well. This has become a difficult problem and a focus for the resolution of data-related disputes, which was worthy of study and attention.
In the introduction made by Secretary General Wang Chengjie, a short film in memory of Mr. Tang Houzhi on his interviews, works and lives during his lifetime, reviewing the glorious achievements and noble personal sentiments of Mr. Tang Houzhi's unremitting cultivation for the arbitration cause, was played at the Tang Lecture.
(Prof. Wang Yi, Vice President of Renmin University of China and CIETAC arbitrator, delivered a keynote speech)
Prof. Wang Yi delivered a keynote speech on the topic of “How Civil Law Responds to the Attribution and Utilization of Data”. First of all, he pointed out that Mr. Tang Houzhi was a landmark figure in the development of China’s arbitration going global. He said that the combination of arbitration and mediation, which is the wisdom of Chinese in resolving disputes, went to the world under the efforts of Mr. Tang Houzhi. In Prof. Wang Yi’s speech, he expressed his heartfelt respect to Mr. Tang Houzhi and other explorers of China's arbitration cause. Afterwards, under the title of “How Civil Law Responds to the Attribution and Utilization of Data”, Prof. Wang Yi delivered the keynote speech to introduce the meaning and nature of data, invoke the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (the Civil Code) to explain the connotation and extension of data in civil law, analyze the personal and property interests carried by data and the difficulties in response to the above issues in civil law. He also focused on sharing his insights on the distribution of data-carried interests. He said that it was the mission of the legal profession to construct a basic legal system of data, and during the process of data legislation, attention should be paid to the configuration of legislative power, law enforcement power and judicial power.
(Mr. Rimsky K K Yuen, Senior Counsel and the former Secretary for Justice of the Government of the Hong Kong SAR, made comments as the commentator)
After the keynote speech, Mr. Rimsky K K Yuen, Senior Counsel and the former Secretary for Justice of the Government of the Hong Kong SAR, made comments as the commentator. He responded to Prof. Wang Yi's speech from micro and macro perspectives. At the micro level, Mr. Rimsky K K Yuen pointed out that further research was needed to be conducted on issues such as the nature of data, the distribution of data benefits, and the types of legal norms for data-related issues. At the macro level, the relationship between data and advanced technology is also worthy of deeper consideration, and there is an urgent need to study how technology will affect dispute resolution and further affct justice.
After the talking session, Secretary General Wang Chengjie briefly summarized the Tang Lecture. After thanking the keynote speaker and commentator for their excellent sharing, he noted that data had become a fundamental resource, an important productivity and a key factor of production in the era of digital economy. The construction of a basic system of data is related to national development and security, and the survival and development of enterprises. Nowadays, data-related legal disputes are the new type of disputes faced by domestic and international dispute resolution organizations, and there are many thorny legal issues in these disputes. Accelerating the construction of a basic system of data and appropriately resolving data-related legal disputes is the mission and responsibility of legal professionals in the field of arbitration. CIETAC is willing to cooperate with all sectors to promote international arbitration exchanges and cooperation, and continue to make unremitting efforts to achieve higher achievements for the international arbitration cause.
This year’s Tang Lecture focused on the hot issues of the rule of law, provided a broad platform for domestic and foreign professionals in the field of arbitration to discuss and exchange ideas, and allowed the world to further understand the achievements of China's rule of law process and the new development of China's arbitration cause through Mr. Tang Houzhi. The Tang Lecture was a complete success.
