Courts

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The trial system refers to the court system governing the establishment of courts, judges, and trials.


Organization and Responsibilities of People's Courts

According to the current Constitution, and the Law on the Organization of People's Courts, People's Courts represent the main trial organ of the state. Organizationally, this court system consists of local courts, special courts and the Supreme Court, with all the first two subject to the supervision of the latter. Local courts are established in accordance with the administrative divisions, while special courts are set up where necessary.

1. Local courts are divided into three levels: Grassroots, Intermediate and Higher.

Under the Law on the Organization of People's Courts, grassroots-level courts consist of tribunals in counties/autonomous counties, cities without administrative districts, or administrative districts of cities. Their responsibilities are:

  • Try criminal, civil and administrative cases as courts of first hearing, except where otherwise provided for by law. Cases deemed to be of a serious nature that should be handled by superior courts can be referred to those superior courts;
  • Handle civil disputes and misdemeanors that do not need trials;

To facilitate lawsuits, grassroots courts may set up tribunals, which are not trial units, but have the responsibility to hear general civil and misdemeanors, guide the work of People's Arbitration Committees, publicize laws and regulations, and handle petitions. Their judgments and decisions represent the judgments and decisions of the grassroots People's Courts.

Intermediate courts are those set up in prefectures, cities directly under provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government) and districts in the four municipalities directly under the central government (hereinafter referred to as "municipalities"). Their responsibilities include:

  • Try the following categories of cases:

a) First-hearing cases under their jurisdiction, as prescribed by law. According to the Law on Criminal Procedures, these cases include those involving national security; criminal cases that may involve life imprisonment or the death penalty; criminal cases committed by foreigners or cases involving Chinese citizens violating the lawful rights and interests of foreigners. According to the Law on Civil Procedures, civil cases heard by intermediate courts are major foreign-related cases; cases of major implications within their jurisdictions; and cases that intermediate courts are ordered to hear by the Supreme Court. In addition, according to the Law on Administrative Procedures, intermediate courts are authorized to hear the following cases: verification of patent rights; customs handling; suits against administrative actions taken by State Council departments or governments of the provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities); other important and complicated cases;

b) First-hearing cases transferred by grassroots courts;

c) Cases appealing or protesting the verdicts and decisions of grassroots courts.

For criminal, civil and administrative cases that intermediate courts deem to be of a serious nature, the intermediate court may request that the cases be transferred to superior courts.

Supervise the performance of grassroots courts within their jurisdiction. They have the power to examine or order grassroots courts to re-examine verdicts or decisions issued by those courts that have already taken effect but that have been found to contain errors. According to the law on court organization, Higher Courts are set up in provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities). Their responsibilities include:

  • Try the following categories of cases:

a) Criminal, civil and administrative cases of major proportions and complications under their jurisdiction, as provided for by the law;

b) First-hearing cases transferred by lower courts;

c) Cases appealing or protesting the verdicts and decisions made by lower courts. Higher courts in areas where a maritime court is located are authorized to try cases appealing the verdicts and rulings made by the maritime court;

d) Protested cases submitted by prosecutors in accordance with trial-monitoring procedures.

  • Review first-hearing cases involving the death penalty ruled by intermediate courts where the accused renounces the right to appeal. If the Higher Court raises no objection to the death penalty, it then files the case with the Supreme Court for verification; if it disagrees with the death penalty ruling, it can either re-examine the case or refer the case back to the Intermediate Court.
  • Review cases submitted by intermediate courts involving a death penalty with two years' reprieve.
  • Approve certain death-penalty cases as authorized by the Supreme Court.
  • Supervise trials by lower courts. For verdicts or judgments passed by lower courts that have been found to contain errors, higher courts are authorized to hear or ask lower courts to reexamine the case.


2. Special courts are courts set up in special departments for special cases wherever necessary. Currently, China has special courts handling military, maritime, railway cases.


Military courts are set up at three levels: grassroots; Great Military Region, Services and Arms; and the PLA Court.

The PLA Court is the supreme military court whose responsibilities include:

  • Try first-hearing cases involving crimes committed by individuals above the division commander level.
  • Try foreign-related criminal cases.
  • Try second-hearing cases, verification and review of cases involving death penalty.

Great Military Region and Services and Arms Courts are intermediate courts set up in great military regions, the navy, the air force, the Second Artillery Army and the PLA General Headquarters. Their responsibilities include:

  • Try first-hearing cases involving crimes committed by individuals at the deputy division commander and regiment level.
  • Try cases that may involve death penalty and cases under their jurisdiction as authorized or designated by superior military courts.
  • Try cases appealing or protesting rulings or verdicts passed by lower courts.

Grassroots military courts consist of tribunals set up in armies, provincial military regions, naval fleets, and air forces within Great Military Regions and in army units deployed in Beijing directly under the headquarters. Their responsibilities include:

  • Try cases involving crimes committed by individuals under the battalion commander level and first-hearing cases that may involve a penalty up to life imprisonment.
  • Try first-hearing cases under its jurisdiction as authorized or designated by superior military courts.

Maritime courts are special courts set up to try first-hearing maritime or sea-shipping cases for the purpose of exercising judicial jurisdiction over maritime affairs. In May 1989, the Supreme People's Court made a Decision on the Scope of Cases to Be Handled by Maritime Courts. That decision specified that maritime courts handle maritime or commercial cases between Chinese legal persons/citizens, between Chinese legal persons/citizens and foreign legal persons/citizens, and between foreign legal persons/citizens. These cases fall into 14 subsets in five categories:

  • Ten categories of cases involving maritime torts and disputes, including: damage claim cases involving collision of vessels; damage claim cases involving vessels colliding into buildings and facilities on the sea, sea-linked waters and ports; claim cases involving vessels discharging or leaking hazardous materials or waste water causing water pollution or damaging other vessels or cargo; claim cases involving casualties in the course of sea-borne shipping or operations on the sea, sea-linked waters and ports.
  • Fourteen categories of commercial cases, including: cases involving shipping contract disputes; contract dispute cases involving passengers and baggage; cases involving seaman labor contract disputes; cases involving maritime rescue and salvage contract disputes; cases involving maritime insurance contract disputes.

Eleven other categories of maritime cases, including: cases involving major liabilities in shipping and maritime operations; cases involving port operation disputes; cases involving general average disputes; cases involving offshore development and exploitation; cases involving the ownership, proprietorship, mortgage or preferred maritime right of claim of vessels; administrative cases involving maritime or inland river authorities; and cases involving maritime fraud.

  • Five categories of cases involving maritime enforcement, including: cases involving compulsory enforcement requested by maritime and inland river authorities; cases involving applications for enforcement of arbitration awards filed by litigants; cases involving applications filed with Chinese maritime courts by litigants for recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards given by arbitration agencies in foreign countries or regions, in accordance with provisions of the convention on recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitration; cases involving applications filed by litigants to Chinese maritime courts for assistance in enforcement of rulings given by foreign courts, in accordance with judicial assistance accords China signed with foreign countries, or with the principle of reciprocity.
  • Two categories of cases involving requests for preservation: cases involving pleas for detaining vessels prior to the opening of trial; cases involving pleas for detaining cargoes aboard ships or fuel for the ships prior to the opening of trial.

Railway transportation tribunals are special courts set up along railways that try the following types of cases:

  • Criminal cases investigated by railway public-security authorities and filed by railway prosecutors.
  • Cases involving economic disputes. In accordance with rulings of the Supreme People's Court, these cases fall into 12 categories: cases involving railway cargo transportation contract disputes; cases involving disputes over the execution of international railway collaboration contracts; cases involving economic disputes within the railway system; cases involving torts that have resulted in damages to railways in violation of railway safety regulations; and tort cases involving human and property losses caused by railway operations and dispatch operations, where the litigant chooses to bring action to the railway tribunal.

3.The Supreme People's Court is located in Beijing, capital city of China. It is the highest judicial organ, exercising the highest judicial power while supervising lower courts and special courts. The Supreme People's Court is presided over by one president and a number of vice presidents, chief justices and justices. The Supreme People's Court exercises the following powers:

  • Supervise lower courts and special courts. For judgments and rulings passed by lower and special courts that have been found to contain errors, the Supreme People's Court have the power to hear the cases or order lower courts to reexamine the cases.
  • Try the following cases:

a) First-hearing cases falling under its jurisdiction as prescribed by the law or as deemed necessary by the court itself. The Law on Criminal Procedure stipulates that the Supreme People's Court has first-hearing right to try criminal and civil cases of major proportions nationwide. The Law on Administrative Procedure provides that the Supreme People's Court has first-hearing jurisdiction over administrative cases of a material and complicated nature.

b) Cases appealing or protesting rulings of higher courts and special courts, and protested cases submitted by the Supreme People's Procuratorate in accordance with legal procedures.

  • Approve death penalty cases.
  • Issue judicial interpretations on how to apply law and writs.
  • Lead and manage judicial administration of courts at all levels across the country.

Organizational structure of the court system in China

Structure of The Supreme People's Court
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