Dr Wang had been arrested in March 2006 outside CIETAC’s Beijing headquarters, facing charges of personal corruption and of having committed a "unit crime" (a crime committed by a "unit", such as a company. A unit crime covers both the unit and the individuals involved). A court in Tianjin subsequently convicted him on both counts.

At the time, the arrest of Dr Wang caused significant concern among the international arbitration community. Dr Wang was well-known to many international arbitrators as the international face of arbitration in China, and he was known to be a prolific writer on arbitration and its future development in China. Consequently, there were concerns raised about his sudden arrest, and this was heightened by a subsequent article, published anonymously, in the Journal of International Arbitration. In the article, a number of reasons were suggested for his arrest, including charges against him for allegedly misusing funds collected by CIETAC during his tenure as Secretary-General and charges of personal corruption. There was also speculation that Dr Wang's arrest was the result of his role as an arbitrator in two Stockholm arbitrations where he had found in favour of the foreign party.

Whether justified or not, the speculation caused some concern over the future of CIETAC arbitrations. In the intervening years, however, CIETAC has managed to address these worries, and has continued to strengthen its position as a leading arbitration commission.

The recent release of Dr Wang has generally received a positive reception from the international arbitration community, and the hope is that this will draw to a close an episode that has been considered regrettable by many observers.