Reform on Private International Law for Consumer Contract in China

The long awaited first Act of China Private International Law, Law of Application of Law for Foreign-related Civil Relations of People’s Republic of China (LALFCR), was adopted on October 28 2010, and will come into force on April 1 2011. Unprecedented, the legislation of China expresses its protective attitude of private international law to consumer evidenced by Article 42 of LALFCR. There is one special article for consumer contract’s applicable rule among all the 52 articles, which is the first protective choice of law rule in China legislative history.This article introduces the background of this new legislation and applicable rules of Cross-border Consumer Contracts.