Transnational judicial dialogue in the rise of China: how the Chinese judiciary enhances the Belt and Road Initiative

Abstract

ABSTRACT Transnational judicial dialogue, initially treated by Anne-Marie Slaughter as a separate theoretical issue, refers to an inter-state engagement that is of growing importance in globalization. Given that China’s longstanding judicial philosophy is highly attentive to the national development strategy, the judiciary immediately devoted itself to enhancing the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – China’s new strategy for engaging with globalization and pursuing its ambition of rising as a leading world power. Transnational judicial dialogue may help improve understanding of the delivery of justice in China and exhibit Chinese ‘judicial wisdom’ to other BRI countries, thereby increasing confidence in the Chinese judiciary while enhancing judicial cooperation between China and other BRI countries. Dialogue may also help other BRI countries better understand China’s national development and foreign policies. Chinese transnational judicial dialogue has its own characteristics, especially in relation to face-to-face programme ‘training’ or yanxiu, provided for foreign judges. This article surveys the diversity and significance of transnational judicial dialogue in a globalized context. In particular, it demonstrates that an assertedly non-liberal state can also become a major player in transnational judicial dialogue and benefit other states, at least in some aspects. Chinese transnational judicial dialogue sheds light on the strengths and weaknesses of Slaughter’s theory.