UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

ZIM INTEGRATED SHIPPING SERVICES, LTD., x

BELCO RESOURCES, INC., SINOCHEM JIANGSU

CORPORATION (FORçE RLY KNOWN A S SINOCHEM

JIANGSU IMPORT & EXPORT CORPORATION), NANJING

HUABIN FOREIGN TRA DE & ECONOMICS C0 ., LTD.,

DRAGONTRANS SHIPPING LTD., d/b/a HUABANG

INTERNATIONAL , INC., SINOTRANS NINGBO

INTERNATIONAL FORWARDING AGENCY C0 ., LTD.,

JOHN DOE 1¤10,

REPLY DECLARATION OF CEE IY HUANZHONG IN FURTHER SUPPORT OF

DEFENDANTS, JOINT MOTION TO DISMISS WITH PREJUDICE THE SECOND

AMENDED COMPLAI NT AND TO VACATE TEE RULE B ATTACHMENT

I, CEEEN HUANZHONG, make the following declaration under penalties of pe411ry

under the law s of the United States of A merica:

1. I m a pam er m the BeiJiI± , China,

has represented and continues to represent Defendant smock m Jiangsu Corp oration (" SMock m

Jiangsu" ) in various legal matters in China.

2. I am over the age of 18, fluent m English, and am h lly competent to mak e this

Declaration.

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Pl aintift;

07CIV 5861(RMB)

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(Electr onically Filed) .

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De:fendants-

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X

ofEce of the f111I1 Global L aw o m ce, which

Case 1:07-cv-05861-RMB-GWG Document 44 Filed 02/22/2008 Page 1 of 17
3. I hav e been a m em b er of the B ar of China sin ce 1996, and am author i zed to

practi ce bef ore th e civ i l and conEmerei a1 courts of China. I am al so adm itted to th e B ar of the

State of U tah -

4 . Th e pl ainti f E Z im Integr ated Shi ppin g Serv i ces, L td . (" Z i m " or " Pl ainti ff '), h as

subm itt ed p ap er s in opp osition to D ef endants, Joint M oti on to D i sm i ss th at ar e m i d eading and

in accur ate. h thi s R ep ly D ecl ar ation , I point out and r espond to som e of the m ore imp ortant

eITor s and m i sleading statem ents in Z i m ' s p aper s- I m ak e th i s R ep ly D ecl ar ati on based upon m y

capacity as a Chi na l aw ex p eË , m y own lqm w l edge, and that of m y n m 1 by v id u e of our w ork on

behalf of Sinochem Jiangs11.

A . A CA SE CON CERNI N G T H E SA IWE DI SPUT E A ND I NV OL V I N G SEVE RAL

OF T H E IYA IWED DE FE ND A NT S I NT H E PRESEN T CA SE I S CURREN T L Y

BEI NGL I T I GA T ED A T T EE IW NGBO M A RI T I M E COURT I N CH I NA

5. Sinotr an s N ingb o Intern ational Forw ardin g A gency C0 ., L td. (" Sinotr an s" ) h as

conm 1eneed a l iti gation ag ain st D ragontr an s Shipp ing L td . d/ b/ a H uab an g International , Inc.

(" H Ilab ang" ), clai mi ng dam ages suf fered in th e sam e accid ent and the consequenti al legal

proceedings and Rul e B action s l aun ch ed b y Z im - T he case w as reg i ster ed an d h eard by th e

N ingbo M ar i tim e C oud on Jan uary 10, 2008. B oth of the tw o p am es ar e def endants n am ed in

the current case b ef or e th i s C OIlIt

6. Flut h ern1ore, H uab ang has cross-cl aim ed an d m ov ed to j oM N aIUin g H Ilab in

Foreig 1 T r ade & Econ om i cs C 0 ., L td . (" H u ab in '1 w hich i s another def endant in the pr esent case

befbre thi s C ourt, in to the l itigati on . I h av e duly obtained and att ached as Ex hibit A hereto th e

N ingbo M ar itim e Cour t R egi st ation N oti ce for thi s case. I am pr ep ar ed to obtain an Engli sh

¡ ansl ati on of th i s docum ent at th e Court ' s r equest -

- 2 .

Case 1:07-cv-05861-RMB-GWG Document 44 Filed 02/22/2008 Page 2 of 17
SINOCHEM JIANGSU IS SEPARATE FROM THE NON-CHINESE

SINOCHEM" COMPANI ES

7. Sinochem Ji an gsu i s organi zed under the l aw s of Chin a an d h as its princip al p lace

of business in N anj in g, C hi na. T o suppod its legal i dentity , I h av e attached h er eto as Exhib its B ,

C , and D , resp ectiv ely , copi es of Sinochem Jiangsu ' s B usiness L icense, Organ izati on Code

c eIt i n ea® , and T ax R egi str ati on Certi f l cate- I am prepar ed to obtain End i sh translations of

th ese docum ents at the C ourt ' s r equ est -

8 . Si nochem (U .S.A .) , Inc ., Sin och em A m erican H oldin gs, In c., and Sinochem

A m eri ca A sset M an agem ent L im i ted- non e of w hi ch ar e par ties to th e present case - ar e not

Chinese comp anies- T hey h av e no dir ect COIp or at e conn ection to s m ock m Ji aI19 11.

9 . s m ock m Corp or ati on- w hi ch i s not a party to the pr esent case » i s organi zed

under the l aw s of C hina and m ai ntains i ts headquarters an d has its princip al p l ace of business in

B eij ing.

10. Sinod em Ji an gsu m ain tain s its own b ank accounts and h as it s ow n asset s,

m anagem ent , an d corpor at e leg al r id 1ts as an entity th at i s sep ar ate and di stinct f rom s m ock m

Corp orati on .

11. SM od em Ji angsu has ri gorousl y honor ed, and h on or s, corp or ate form al iti es at all

tim es. It has b een a reputab l e intem ati onal tr adi ng com p any for h al f a century .

C . R E B U T T A L S T O T H E C lfE N E SE L A W O PI N I O N S SU B M I T T E D B Y IVI R . Q I A N

I N SU PP O R T O F PL A I N T I FF ' S O PPO SI T I O N

12 . For th e D ecl ar at ion b y Y ulin Q i an in SLIppod o f Pl ain ti f f É Opposition to the Joint

M otion s dated Jan u ary 10, 2008, I subm it th e h ll ow in g r ebuttal op inion s suppor ted b y citations

to the original Chinese l aw s.

- 3 .

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13. Par agr aph s 7 and 8 of M r . Q ian ' s D ec1ar ati on, regarding th e one-y ear statute of

limi tati ons for m ar itim e claim s un der Chi nese l aw , are m oot . B oth as a m atter of f act, and as a

m att er of law , the CUITent l itigati on broud 1t b y Z i m in thi s Court and the l i ti gati on comm enced

by Sin otrans at th e N in gbo M ar i tim e Court , hav e stopp ed the clock on the lim i tati ons per iod ,

under A It ick 267 o f the M ar i tim e Code o f the Peop l e' s R epubli c of Chin a:

Ð 1e l imita tion of time shal l be discontinued as a r esult of br i ng i ng an action or

submitting the case j br ar bitr ati on by the cla imant or the adm ission t0 ¬ IHl l

obl ig ations by the p er son ag ainst whom the claim was br oug ht up . H o wever , the

limi tation qf time shal l not be discontinued tf the cla imant w ithdr aws his acti on or

h u submission j bM FAU tr ation, or h u acti on has been r  ́ j ected by a d ec ision qf the

cour t.

m mr e the claimGnt makes a claim j br the ar rest qf a shtÓ the limitÁtion qf time

shall be discontinuedï £m the day on which the claim is made.

14 . Par agr aph 9 of M r . Q ian ' s D ecl ar ation i s a g av e m i sst atem ent of both Chinese

l aw an d Ch inese court pr acti ce:

A . Civil P r ocedur e L aw qf the P eop le :s Rep ubl ic qf c hinapA r ticle 243 r

h the case qf an action concer n ing a contr act disp ute or other disp utes

over p r op er t y r ig h ts and in ter ests, br oug ht Ág ai nst a deh nd ant w ho has no

domi cile w ithi n the ter FaitOFy qf the P eop le 's R ep ubl ic qf c h inÁ, © the

contr act is sig ned or p eFf brm ed w ithin the tew itOFy qf the P eop l e 's

Rep ubl i c qf c hina, or tf the oäj ect qf the action is l ocated w i thin the

tew itOFy qf the P eop l e 1s Rep ubl ic qf c hina, or © the dÕ ndant has

detaina ble p r op er oy w ithi n the ter r itOFy qf the P eop le 's Rep ubl ic qf

c hinG, or tf the dó kndant has iu r ep r esentative qg?ce w ithin the

ter r itory qf the P eop le 's Rep ubl ic qf c hinÁ, the P eop le 's Cour t qf the

p lace w her e the contr act is signed or p eFTbr me4 or w her e the oäj ect qf

- 4 .

Case 1:07-cv-05861-RMB-GWG Document 44 Filed 02/22/2008 Page 4 of 17
- 5 .

the acti on U, or w her e the dÕ ndant 's detÁinable p r op er t y u lo cated

or wher e the tor ts ar e done, or w her e the d ́ fkndant 's r ep r esentative

qg?ce U l ocated shÁll have j ur isdictionB . A r ticle l O qf the Guidance qf the Second N ational M ar itime Cour t Tr M l

Convention qf the Sup r eme Cour t qf c hina

F or a j br eig n-r el ated disp ute that both the Chinese cow m d a j br eig n cour t Ár e

entitl ed to j ur isdi ction, tf one p ar t y commences li tig ation Át the Chinese cour t

qfter- it had sui ted the same case at a j br eig n cour t wlu cid ad hear d the case, or

the opp osing p Gr t y P Ies the same case at th e Chinese cour t, the Chinese cour t

shall ex er t j ur isdi ction r eg ar dless qf w hether thej br eig n cour t hd hear d the caseThe Chinese cour t shall have discr etion to heÁr the casep consider ing a ll the

cir cumstances and el ements.

T heref or e, D ef endant B el co can b e sued in Chi na.

15. Par agr aph 12 of Mr . Q i an ' s D ecl ar ation i s an incom et descripti on of both the

facts of thi s case an d the l aw of Chin a- Squar el y opp osite to statem ent s (a) an d (b) by M r . Q i an ,

both th e di sputed goods and th e decl ar ation of such goods w er e commeted to or occurred in

Chin a. Furth erIn ore, sub stanti al l y all the w itn esses, evi dence, t an saction r ecord s, and r el ated

p arti es reside i n Chin a, ev i denced b y the f act that four out of Ev e def end ant s in thi s case ar e

Chin ese com p an i es. G iv en thi s f act, a comp etent Chinese court could h ear the case m uch easi er

and conv enientl y th an a court in the U ni ted States or any w h ere el se.

16. Par agr aph 13 of M I-- Qi an ' s D ecl arati on i s m outdated descripti on of Chinese l aw

and Chinese cour ts. D ecl ar ator y j udg n ents and inj uncti on s are b ecom i n g connEon instr um ent s

of Chinese com± , ex pandin g ó om the ar eas of IP di sputes and banlqu ptcy cases to m ost

conun ercial liti gation .

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- 6 .

17. Par agr aph 14 o f M r . Q i an ' s D ecl ar ati on contr adicts the bl ack l ett er l aw of th e

M ari tim e Code L aw of th e Peop l e' s R epub li c of C hina:

A r ticle 51 ¤ 17he car r i er shall not be liablej br the l oss qf or damag e Ø the g oods

occur r ed dur ing the p er iod qf car r ier :s r esp onsib il io y ar ising or r esulting ¬ om

any qf thej bMow ing causw

f l j h ul t qf the M aster , cr ew members, p ilot or ser vant qf the car r ier in the

navigation or manag ement qf the shV J

fZj F ir e, unl ess CGUsed by the actual j hult qf the car r ier J

f3j Force mqj eure and p er ils, dangers m d accidents qf the sea or other navigable

waters ¤

f4) War or u FFted coõ lictJ

f; ́j Act qf the government or comp eu nt authorities, quam ntm restr ictions or

seizure under legal p rocessJ

fO Str ikes, stopp ages or restm int qf labour,¤

Î SÁlying or Gttemp ting to save lifk OF-p rop erty Át seaJ

f° Act qf the shv p er, owner qf the goods or their agentsJ

ö N atur e or inher ent vice qf the g oods;

Ñ qj h adequaq qf p ack ing or instm cienq qf ill ed bi l iv 4 mar k f J

Ñ l j L atent dÕ ct qf the sh Á not discover able by d ue dil ig enceJ

Ñ zj A ny other causm ar ising w ithout the j hult qf the car r ier or his ser vant or

ag entT heref or e an d under Ch in ese l aw , Pl aintiff Z im could b e directl y inm 111n i zed fr om l i abi lities to

other cargo ow n ers, i f it i s a carri er of no f ault .

18. Par agr aph 16 of M r . Qi an ' s D ecl ar ation i s m incOITect stat em ent of Chi nese court

pr acti ce. Fud heL it contr adi ct s th e Civi l Procedur e L aw of th e Peop le' s R epubl ic of Ch ina,

w hich prov i des that :

Case 1:07-cv-05861-RMB-GWG Document 44 Filed 02/22/2008 Page 6 of 17
A r ticle l l 9.¤ w hen a p ar 3 w ho must app ea r in a j oint li tig ation but j hi ls to do m

the P eop le k Cour t shal l notî him to p ar ticv ate into th e p r oceeding -

It i s further contr ar y to A r ti cl e 57 of th e Suprem e C ourt Interp retation of the C iv i l Procedur e

L aw of the Peopl e' s R epub l ic of Chin a:

A r ticle 5 7.¤wh en a mm da topy j oint p m× j hils to p ar ticÁ ate into the l i tig Gtion, the

p eop l e k Cour t shall notî it to j oin into th e p r oceeding accordi ng Ø the A r ticl e

l l 9 4 the Civil P r ocedure L aw. Other p ar ties cÁn also app by w ith the cour t to

j oin the thiFd p ar ties19. Paragr aph s 18 and 19 of M I-- Q ian ' s D ecl ar at ion are w rong . T he Civ il Procedur e

L aw of the Peopl e' s R epub li c of Chi na stipul ates:

A r ticle 250.¤ m e ti me p er iod j br handl ing a civil case invol ving j breign el ements

by the P eop l e k Cour t shal l not be l imited by the p r ovu ions qf h Ç le l 35 Ánd l 59

4 this L awT here is no t ial ti m e-l im it in cases inv olv ing for ei g 1 elem ents. T hu s, in pr acti ce, Chi nese courts

alw ays g ant a l onger ti m e (com m onl y dollb h th e am ount of tim e for dom esti c p arti es) to forei g 1

p aIt i es f or producing ev idence.

20. Par agr aph 23 of M r . Q i an ' s D ecl ar ation , w hich talk s ab out the j udi ci al assi st ance

to U .S. cour ts by a Chi n ese court, i s a sev ere mi sreading of b oth Chin ese l aw and Chinese

gov ermn ent/ court pr actice. A rticl e 3 19 o f th e Suprem e Peop le' s C ourt Int erp retation of the Civ i l

Pr ocedur e L aw states:

Chinese cour u shall r ó ect to p r ovide j udicial assistance r equested by j br eig n

cour tsj h m countr ies w hich do not sig n j udi cial assistance Gg r u ments or have no

mutual-benÈ cial r elationshv w ith Chim -

- 7 .

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- 8 .

2 1. Par agr aph s 32 an d 33 of M r . Q i an ' s D ec1ar ati on ar e ov er -simp li n ed an d

prqjudi ced stat em ent s of Chin ese agency l aw s- T o m y lqm w l ed ge and ex p eri ence, both Chi nese

law and Chinese court s adop t v er y sim i l ar tests of agency rel ati on ship s an d the v ari ous li ab i liti es

resul ting theref rom -

D . I N SU M M A R Y O F T H E M A J O R PO I N T S O F C H I N E SE L A W C O N C E R N I N G

T H E C U RR E N T C A SE

22 . T h er e A r e N o St at u t e of L i m it ati on s I ssu es f or Z i nf s C ase i n t h e C hi n ese

C ou r t s. Z im has ar gu ed that i f thi s case i s tr an sf erred to China th en i ts cl aim s w i l l b e subj ect to

a restr ain ed statute of l im i tati ons under Chin ese h w . T hi s i s incor rect and m oot . A s a m atter of

Chinese law , an y statut e of li mi tat ions dIat Z im w oldd face in commetion w ith its clai m s h as

b een tol l ed b y the incepti on of Sinotrans' liti gati on again st H Il ab ang in the N in gb o court , as w el l

as b y Z im ' s ini tiati on of th e p resen t acti on b ef ore thi s C OIld .

23. T h e C h i n ese C ou r ts C ou l d A sser t J u r i sdi ct ion O v er A l l of t h e Par t i es. Z im

has al so M gu ed , tk oud l th e decl ar ation of A ttom ey Q i an , that " Chin ese COIlIt s m i d 1t not hav e

j ur i sdi ction ov er def endant B el co Resources, In c., an en ti ty l ocated in the U ni ted Stat es .

Qi an D ec1. Û 11. A s set fod h in m y ori gi nal decl ar ati on m supp od of D ef endants, Joint M oti on

to D i sm i ss, how ev er , " [t]he courts of China hav e j uri sdi cti on ov er m ari tim e clai m s, tor ts, and

conËactu al br each es that occur in or ari se out of conduct occurring in China" and " [u]n der

Chin ese l aw , Chin ese courts w oul d h av e p er sonal j uri sdi ction ov er all of the def end ant s in thi s

case, in cludin g B elco R esources, h1C., in commetion w ith Z im ' s cl aim s in th i s action -" T hi s

conclusi on of l aw i s a nt h er supp orted b y the ci ted Chin a Civ i l Procedur e L aw s in pr ev iou s

par agr agh s of th i s R ep ly D ecl ar ati on .

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24. T he Chinese Cour t s Could A ssert Jur isdiction Over the Car go I nter ests.

Under Chinese law , all of the entities that own ed cargo aboard the ship dud ng the alleged

incident- no matter whether they are Chinese or not- - Ø n j oin or be j oined into the pending

liti gati on m Chin a.

25. U n der Chin a Civ i l Pro cedur e L aw A rticle 24 3, an d Speci al M aritim e Procedur al

L aw of the Peop l e' s R ep ub li c of Chi na A rti cl e 6, a Chinese court can ex erci se j uri sdi cti on ov er

def endan ts w ho enter into contr acts or com m i t tor tious act s in Ch in a- T hu s i f Z im ' s al l egation s

w er e tn le, it could br in g an acti on in China again st all of th e def endants, includi ng B el c0.

I d ecl ar e under th e pen alty of p ed ury un der the l aw s of the U ni ted St at es of A m eri ca that

the fbregoing i s tr ue and corr ect .

Executed on Febm ary

h Beij ing, China.

, 9 .

22, 2008

HUANZHONG

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