Accordingto an October 24 report by Songjiang News, the People's Court ofSongjiang District, Shanghai, recently adjudicated and mediated ashareholder transfer dispute involving a foreign national.

根据10月24日松江新闻的报道，上海市松江区人民法院最近审理并调解了一起涉及外国公民的股东转让纠纷案。

Thedefendant, a Japanese citizen, had previously co-operated with theplaintiff in running several restaurant chains. In 2020, the twoparties signed a share transfer agreement, under which the plaintiffexited the business and transferred his shares to the defendant.According to the agreement, the defendant was obligated to pay theplaintiff 1 million yuan. However, at the time of the lawsuit, thedefendant still owed 360,000 yuan plus interest. The case was filedwith the court on June 6.

被告是一名日本公民，之前与原告合作经营几家连锁餐厅。2020年，双方签订了一份股份转让协议，根据该协议，原告退出业务并将股份转让给被告。根据协议，被告有义务向原告支付100万元人民币。然而，在诉讼时，被告仍欠原告36万元加上利息。该案于6月6日向法院提起。

Duringthe trial, the judge carefully reviewed the circumstances of bothparties. The plaintiff, seeking to recover the outstanding debt,requested that the defendant's bank accounts be frozen and that hisexit from China be restricted.

在审理过程中，法官仔细审查了双方的情况。原告为了追回未付债务，请求冻结被告的银行账户并限制其离开中国。

Giventhat the defendant was a foreign national and still operated multiplerestaurant chains, the judge decided to first offer a legalexplanation to both parties, urging them to resolve the issue throughmediation.

鉴于被告是外国公民并且仍在经营多家连锁餐厅，法官决定首先向双方提供法律解释，敦促他们通过调解解决争议。

Thejudge noted that the facts of the case were clear, and based on theavailable evidence, the defendant was likely to lose the case, withthe potential for further measures being taken based on theplaintiff's application. These actions would undoubtedly affect thedefendant's livelihood. "If we proceed according to theplaintiff's request to freeze the defendant’s accounts andrestrict his exit, it would have a significant impact on thedefendant," said He Jihua, Senior Judge of the Commercial Court."From our perspective, we would prefer to avoid such asituation. The defendant is a foreign businessman operating in China,and we want to support him in successfully running his business here,under the premise that the plaintiff’s rights are alsoprotected."

法官指出，案件的事实清楚，根据现有证据，被告很可能输掉官司，根据原告的申请可能会采取进一步措施。这些行动无疑会影响被告的生计。商事法庭的高级法官何继华表示：“如果我们按照原告的要求冻结被告的账户并限制其出境，将对被告产生重大影响。从我们的角度来看，我们希望避免这种情况。被告是在中国经营业务的外国商人，我们希望在保护原告权益的前提下，支持他在中国成功经营业务。”

Throughmediation, the court reached a resolution where the defendant agreedto pay the outstanding amount over a two-year period in monthlyinstallments. As a result, the case was closed amicably. Thedefendant has already made the first payment as agreed.

通过调解，法院达成了一项解决方案，被告同意在两年内分期每月支付未付金额。结果，案件友好地结案。被告已经按照约定支付了首期款项。

JudgeHe emphasized that the mediation outcome was significant not only forensuring the plaintiff's rights but also for minimizing the impact onthe defendant. "This approach reduces the impact on thedefendant and allows him more time and resources to focus on hisbusiness activities. This is also a positive contribution to thebusiness environment," he said. Furthermore, the defendant’srestaurant chains employ over 100 staff members, and the successfulmediation helped avoid potential indirect consequences such aslayoffs.

何法官强调，调解结果不仅对确保原告的权利至关重要，而且对减少对被告的影响也很重要。他说：“这种方法减少了对被告的影响，让他有更多的时间和资源专注于业务活动。这也是对商业环境的积极贡献。”此外，被告的连锁餐厅雇佣了100多名员工，成功的调解帮助避免了可能的间接后果，如裁员。