On December 1, 2025, the inauguration ceremony for the new premises of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) Shanghai Hearing Centre was grandly held at the Changning Campus of East China University of Political Science and Law (ECUPL). As the first hearing center established by CAS in Asia, this event signifies the comprehensive upgrade of the Centre's services and academic cooperation in sports dispute resolution in the Asia-Pacific region.
Following the inauguration ceremony, an academic seminar titled "Opportunities and Challenges for the CAS Shanghai Hearing Centre in the Digital Environment" was simultaneously convened. The event was jointly hosted by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and ECUPL, and co-organized by the CAS Shanghai Hearing Centre and the ECUPL Research Centre for International Sports Arbitration and Rule of Law.
Experts and scholars, including Mr. Matthieu Reeb (CAS Director General), Mr. Fabien Cagneux (Director of the CAS Anti-Doping Division), Mr. Lu Lin (Deputy Secretary and Vice Director of the Shanghai Administration of Sports), Ms. Gu Jieyan (Vice Head of Changning District People's Government, Shanghai), Mr. Xiao Kai (President of ECUPL), Mr. Luo Peixin (Vice President of ECUPL), Mr. Du Tao (Dean of the School of International Law, ECUPL), Mr. Guan Baoying (Counsellor of the Shanghai Municipal Government and Vice President of the China Sports Law Society), Mr. Chen Yiping (Chairman of the Board of the CAS Shanghai Hearing Centre), and Ms. Ma Chunfu (Director of the CAS Shanghai Hearing Centre), jointly unveiled the new premises. Invited guests engaged in in-depth discussions focusing on core issues such as the functional positioning, rules outlook, and talent cultivation of the CAS Shanghai Hearing Centre.
Llinks partner Mr. David Wu was invited to attend both the inauguration ceremony and the seminar in his capacity as a CAS Arbitrator and Vice President of the China Sports Law Society. Mr. Wu delivered a speech titled "Exploration and Application of International Sports Arbitration Jurisprudence in Chinese Sports Arbitration Practice," analyzing international sports dispute resolution cases and the reference significance and practical integration pathways of lex sportiva for Chinese sports arbitration. Llinks lawyer Mr. Roy Chu was also invited to attend as the Vice Director of the Shanghai Bar Association's Sports Law Committee and a practice expert, and provided translation services for the seminar.
