Hong Kong is a metropolitan city characterized as a hybrid of the East and the West. It became a special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China after 1997, under the principle of “One Country, Two Systems” enshrined in the Basic Law. Despite this significant constitutional change, Hong Kong maintains a common law system that is familiar to the international community.

The phenomenon of the East-West amalgamation is also reflected in the development of mediation. In traditional Chinese culture, mediation conforms with the concept of “harmony” which is the ultimate goal of Chinese human relationships. One prominent feature of harmony is the avoidance of suits and adversarial proceedings. The idea of “no suits” can be found in the teachings of Confucianism, and has been deeply rooted in the thinking of Chinese people. The mode of mediation currently practiced in Hong Kong is a wonderful synthesis of Chinese ideology and the structured process of the Western facilitative mediation model.