美国联邦法院确认外国仲裁裁决的管辖权问题——以涉及中国政府的两个案件为例

Jurisdiction Issues in Confirming Foreign Arbitral Awards in the Federal Courts of the United States:Study of Two Cases Involving the Chinese Government

根据《承认及执行外国仲裁裁决的纽约公约》(《纽约公约》)第3条,各缔约国应平等对待国内仲裁裁决与外国仲裁裁决,但有权利用具体的程序规则来确定如何对待外国仲裁裁决。根据美国联邦法院的判例,在《纽约公约》第5条之外,美国法院可以援引其国内程序规则来拒绝承认与执行外国仲裁裁决。外国仲裁裁决要得到美国联邦法院的承认与执行,申请人有义务证明该法院对当事人拥有对人管辖权和事项管辖权,被申请人也可以援引"不方便法院"原则来抗辩。中国政府和中国国有企业均是独立主体,在涉及中国政府和中国国有企业的外国仲裁裁决的承认与执行案件中,美国联邦法院不能将中国政府和中国国有企业混为一体而行使管辖权。

Article III of the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards(the New York Convention) provides that there shall not be imposed substantially more onerous conditions on the recognition or enforcement of arbitral awards to which this convention applies than are imposed on the recognition or enforcement of domestic arbitral awards.However,each contracting state has the power to make use of the specific rules of procedure to determine how to recognize and enforce the foreign arbitral awards.According to the New York Convention and the precedents of the federal courts of the United States of America,the federal courts may apply the rules of procedure rather than Article V of the New York Convention to refuse the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards.To apply for confirmation of foreign arbitral awards in the United States of America,the applicants are obliged to show that the court has personal jurisdiction and subject matter jurisdiction over the respondents,and the respondents may invoke the doctrine of forum non conveniens as a defence.Both Chinese government and Chinese state-owned enterprises are independent bodies,and thus the federal courts of the United States of America shall dismiss the cases which may mix the independent legal status of the Chinese government and Chinese state-owned enterprises in the cases of recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards involving the Chinese government and Chinese state-owned enterprises.