Research On The Enforcement Of International Commercial Settlement Agreement Under Singapore Convention On Mediation

As a means to solve international commercial disputes,commercial mediation has its unique advantages.Whether the settlement agreement produced by international commercial mediation can be effectively implemented is not only related to whether the mediation system can finally solve disputes for the parties,but also determines the value and attractiveness of mediation as a commercial dispute resolution mechanism.At present,there is no consensus on the enforcement of the settlement agreement in the international scope.Under this background,the UN General Assembly adopted the Singapore Convention,and the birth of the Convention established a new international framework for the implementation of the commercial settlement agreement.This paper aims to explore the implementation of settlement agreement under the system established by the Convention.Firstly,the meaning and characteristics of commercial mediation and settlement agreement are explained with Singapore Convention.Commercial mediation is a process with the assistance of a third party.The word "mediation" should be understood broadly in Singapore Convention.The result obtained through the commercial mediation procedure is a settlement agreement.Singapore Convention clarifies that the settlement agreement applicable to the Convention should have three characteristics: "internationality","commerciality" and "arising from independent mediation procedure".Secondly,it analyzes the effectiveness of the settlement agreement.The effectiveness of the settlement agreement is related to whether the dispute can be finally resolved.Theoretically,the traditional view holds that it has no enforcement power.This paper holds that the settlement agreement should be allowed to have "teeth" to adapt to the "growth" of the mediation system.In terms of legislative practice,both the legislation of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and the European Union,as well as the legislation of India and Singapore,have made some breakthroughs in determining the validity of settlement agreements,and the Singapore Convention has given the international commercial settlement agreements the effect of being directly enforceable.Thirdly,it analyzes the specific enforcement rules of settlement agreement under Singapore Convention.The parties can apply for direct enforcement of the settlement agreement according to the Convention,and can also use the settlement agreement to put forward defense in the non-enforcement stage.In addition,Article 5 of Singapore Convention also stipulates "reasons for refusing to grant relief",which provides relief channels for the rights and interests of the parties.Finally,combining with the current practice of China’s settlement agreement implementation,this paper explores how to build a "bridge" between China’s existing system and the mechanism established by Singapore Convention.Although there is a contradiction between the way of direct execution and the current situation that the settlement agreement produced by mediation can not be enforced in China,this contradiction is not unsolvable.It is feasible for China to ratify the Convention,and it can improve the implementation mechanism in China in the connection with the Convention,thus promoting the development of commercial mediation in China.