The Chinese Maritime Courts are not obliged to recognise and/or enforce foreign courts' orders, therefore Hanjin's creditors could still arrest Hanjin-related vessels in China if they have maritime claims (recognised under Chinese law) against the registered owners and/or bareboat charterers of the said vessels.
Container leasing companies and bunker suppliers could also file applications in order to request that the corresponding Chinese Maritime Courts order Hanjin to return the leased containers to Hanjin or the bunkers supplied to Hanjin in certain circumstances.
Provision of counter-security (the Chinese Maritime Courts have considerable latitude on the amount and form of the counter-security) is a potential difficulty which the creditors often encounter in practice.
When the vessels under arrest are subject to a judicial sale as ordered by the Chinese Maritime Courts, the above mentioned creditors may be able to register their claims against the sale proceeds of the vessel, although creditors holding lower-priority claims may not achieve any actual recovery if the sale proceeds are insufficient to cover all the claims.
Hanjin Shipping - Current Jurisdictional Status And Options - China
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