It is widely recognized that a right in rem to movables is to be governed by the law where the movable is located, while party autonomy is confined to the choice of law in contractual matters. Recently there have been calls to extend party autonomy to right in the choice of law in rights in rem to movables. The 2010 Act of the People’s Republic of China on the Law Applicable to Civil Relations with a Foreign Element (the Act) is a legislative move. The question, however, remains whether it is reasonable for mandatory property law to be left to the choice of parties, in particular in an age when transborder movement of movables is frequent. This paper analyzes the issues of party autonomy and applicable law to rights in rem to movables.