Yesterday it was reported that China’s leading search engine Baidu has launched a blockchain solution for legal arbitration. It aims to ensure electronic evidence is trustworthy, accurate, and safe from tampering. The platform also allows for secure storage and transmission of data.
The firm claims that it is the first electronic evidence platform using 5G network slicing, which allows virtual networks to run on top of the super-fast mobile network. The platform was built with the Qingdao Arbitration Commission and was mentioned at a press conference two weeks ago. The organizations reached an agreement earlier this summer.
China is one of the world’s most active users of arbitration for dispute resolution. Online mediation, for disputes in finance or ecommerce where documents are easily digitised, is also becoming more popular. The country’s Wuhan Arbitration Commission issued new guidelines for implementing the service last month.
However, judicial arbitration in general can be hampered by poor-quality evidence, improper methods of evidence gathering, and a lack of trust. Baidu’s solution addresses these issues by utilizing the immutability of blockchain to provide a trustworthy log of evidence from the source.
The platform uses Baidu’s open-source XuperChain protocol on the Baidu Blockchain Engine (BBE). The Engine supports both Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric.
The lead of the XuperChain team said that this is just the beginning of Baidu’s legal projects: “In the future, Baidu […] will provide diversified services for more public security law scenes such as notarization and judicial appraisal, and promote new technologies such as blockchain, big data and artificial intelligence to become the core technology supporting the judicial system.“
Baidu’s arbitration blockchain is the latest addition to its many projects. Last week, the firm launched a health blockchain. It also has a copyright protection system named PIC-CHAIN, which was released a few months before Baidu began to offer the BBE blockchain as a service.
In the legal sector, however, there are few projects in arbitration due to possible pitfalls. Online arbitration platforms are used in China, such as one offered by the Arbitration Court of the Minjiang New Area last week. It focuses on cross border disputes, allowing for remote resolution.
