No. 21 [2016] of the Supreme People’s Court

 　　To further optimize judicial resource, improve judicial efficiency, promote judicial fairness, reduce litigation cost of the parties and maintain legitimate rights and interests of the masses, the following opinions on further promoting the division of complexity and simplicity for cases and optimizing the judicial resource allocation are proposed pursuant to the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, the Criminal Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China and other laws and regulations, combined with practical work of the people's court.

 　　1. Promoting the division of complexity and simplicity according to the judicial disciplines. We will hear the simple cases quickly according to the law through the scientific allocation and efficient application of trial resources, and standardize the trial of complex cases in strict to achieve speedy trial of simple cases and detailed trial of complex cases. According to the case facts, application of law, social impact and other factors, we shall select appropriate trial procedure, standardize and improve conversions between different programs to be complex or simple properly according to the circumstances, and make great efforts to obtain better legal results at a smaller judicial cost.

 　　2. Promoting the screening and division of cases when filing. Local people's court at different levels shall formulate distinguish standard and division rules of simple and complex cases scientifically according to the provisions of law, and adopt the method with the random distributing cases as focus and designated distributing cases as supplementary to ensure that the simple cases are heard in time by the people's court and the quick trial team, and the serial, group or related cases shall be heard by the same trial organization in principle. For a case that is difficult to be judged in time and accurately due to the extent of complexity and simplicity, the filling, trial and trial management department shall timely communicate with each other to achieve orderly and efficient work.

 　　3. Improving service procedure and methods. If the parties appoint the service address before the dispute occurs, the people's court may use this address as the confirmation address for serving the litigation documents. When a party sues or replies, the confirmation letter of the service address shall be filled in according to the regulations. Service shall be realized electronically. If the parties agree the electronic service, they shall provide and confirm the electronic service addresses such as fax numbers, E-mail, Wechat ID, etc. We shall make full use of China Judicial Process Information Online and establish a unified electronic service platform for national courts. Improving national postal service shall be delivered by special mailing for court.

 　　4. Giving full play to the advantages of the quick trial procedure in civil cases. According to the provisions of the Civil Procedure Law and its judicial interpretation, we shall actively guide the parties to agree on the summary procedure to hear civil cases. For a simple civil case in which the amount of the subject exceeds the prescribed standard or a civil case that does not belong to the circumstance stipulated by Term 1, Article 157 of the Civil Procedure Law, but the amount of the subject is below the prescribed standard, if agreed by the parties, the small claims procedure can be applied. Special procedures for the realization of security interest cases shall be applied in accordance with the law. We shall actively guide the parties to transfer the cases where creditors request the debtors to pay money and securities to the supervision and promotion procedures, and promote the use of electronic payment orders.

 　　5. Innovating the fast-track sentencing mechanism for criminal cases. We should summarize the pilot experience of criminal fast-track sentencing procedure, strengthen connection and cooperation of investigation, prosecution and trial procedure, generalize the establishment of fast-track sentencing office at detention house, law enforcement and case handling organization and other places, and promote case information sharing and paperless circulation of files to accelerate the simplification of case handling.

 　　6. Simplifying trial procedure of administrative case. For administrative cases which have been filed but are not in line with the conditions of prosecution, if it is considered that no trial is required after reading, investigating and inquiring about the parties, a determination to dismiss a prosecution is available. For a case with clear facts, clear rights and obligations relationship, and minor disputes, we shall explore and establish the mechanism of administrative quick trial.

 　　7. Exploring the way to implement test case. For serial or group civil and administrative cases, we shall select individual or few cases to implement test case first, and handle other similar cases according to its results of judgments and rulings to efficiently solve batch cases through demonstration handling of individual case.

 　　8. Carrying out the trial of the case in a concentrated time. For civil cases which are heard for summary procedures, and the minor criminal cases which are heard for quick trial procedure or summary procedure, we shall implement centralized filling, deportation, schedule, session and judgment, and a number of cases will be heard continuously by the same judicial organization in the same period.

 　　9. Giving full play to the meeting function before trail. The judge or the judge's assistant under the guidance of the judge shall preside over the meeting before trial to solve the relevant procedural matters such as checking the identity of the parties, organizing the exchange of evidence catalogues, and starting the exclusionary rule of illegal evidence. For cases that are suitable for mediation, the reconciliation of the parties or the mediation agreement can be realized through the meeting before trial. For the undisputed facts and evidence confirmed at the meeting before trial, we can simplify court hearing proof and cross examination after making explanations in court hearing. For disputed facts and evidence, the focus of the dispute shall be summed up after consulting the opinions of the parties.

 　　10. Innovating the way to open a court session. For the civil and criminal cases that are heard for summary procedure, with the consent of the parties, a court session can be opened by the remote video. Witnesses, appraisers and victims may use audio-visual transmission technology or synchronous video evidence room to testify.

 　　11. Carrying out the reform of the way of court hearing record. We shall actively develop and use intelligent speech recognition technology to translate voice in the court hearing into words and generate court records, implement the requirements for full voice and video & audio recording in court hearing, explore and use court hearing audio and video recording to simplify or replace court records of court clerk.

 　　12. Promoting the reform of the way of civil court hearing. For civil cases that are heard for small claims proceedings, it is possible to conduct a court hearing directly around the litigation request, without being restricted by court hearing procedures such as court investigation, court debate, etc. With regard to civil cases with relatively concentrated elements of cases and points of trial, the court order can be determined according to the relevant elements and the litigation request, and the court investigation and court debate shall be carried out synchronously around the controversial elements.

 　　13. Exploring the reform of court hearing methods of confession and punishment case. Regarding defendant confession cases, we shall explore and simplify the court hearing procedure, and listen to the final statement of the defendant. Where heard for fast-track sentencing procedure for criminal cases, no court investigation or court debate can be carried out. If heard for criminal summary procedure, it is not subject to court investigation, court debate and other court hearing procedures.

 　　14. Promoting the sentence in the court. For the civil cases that are heard for the small claims procedure and the criminal cases that are heard for the fast-track sentencing procedure, in principle, it shall be sentenced in court. For the cases that are heard for civil, criminal and administrative summary procedures, it shall be sentenced in court in general. For the civil, criminal and administrative cases that are heard for ordinary procedure, the rate of sentencing in the court shall be improved gradually.

 　　15. Implementing the division of complexity and simplicity for judgement document. According to the instance of court, case type and court hearing, the division of complexity and simplicity shall be carried out for the system and the structure as well as reasoning of the judgement document. The judgement document of complex cases shall be argued specifically around the focus of dispute. For the new simple cases with guiding significance, the reasoning shall be strengthened. For other simple cases, the reasoning can be simplified through simple judgement document such as writ, element and form, etc. Regarding the cases sentenced in the court, the judgement document can be simplified properly. For the civil cases that are performed immediately in the court, it is possible to record the relevant circumstances in the transcript of the court and no longer issue the judgement documents after obtaining the consent of the parties. 

 　　16. Improving cohesive mechanism of case of second instance. We shall actively guide the parties and lawyers to submit electronic litigation materials, promote the construction of the smart court and the computerization of the lawsuit archives and speed up the transfer of the files between the upper and lower courts in the way of electronic archive. We shall optimize the ways of hearing of second instance, and hear around disputes between the parties in the lawsuit to avoid unnecessary repetition between second instance and first instance in court hearing and judgement documents. The functions such as unified judgment for second instance and clear judicial rules shall be strengthened.

 　　17. Promoting the scientificity of proportion of personnel and case. We shall dynamically adjust the trial of strength for different courts and different trial departments based on the accurate measurement of the personnel, case quantity and workload. According to instance of court, case complexity and simplicity and other relevant factors, the allocation proportion of the judge, the judge’s assistance and court clerk shall be determined reasonably, and their respective function and mutual relation shall be defined scientifically to give full play to the superiority of the trial team to the most extent.

 　　18. Popularizing professional trial. On the basis of full consideration of judges' handling ability, experience and expertise, the professional trial organizations for hearing categorization cases shall be determined according to different types of the cases, and the adjudicatory personnel in charge of hearing simple and complex cases shall be determined according to the complexity and simplicity extent of the case. We shall promote the standardization construction of handling cases, improve the system of case work, establish judge rotation mechanism, and improve performance evaluation system to stimulate and maintain the vitality of the trial team.

 　　19. Promoting the centralized management for auxiliary affairs of trial. According to the actual needs of the trial, special trial assistants shall be arranged in the litigation service centers or judicial business departments, who are responsible for auxiliary affairs of trial such as service, scheduling session, preservation, appraisement and document online, etc.

 　　20. Improving diversified dispute settlement mechanism. We shall promote all kinds of governance bodies, such as comprehensive governance organization, administrative organs, people's mediation organizations, commercial mediation organizations, industrial mediation organizations, arbitration institutions and the notary institutions, to play the role of preventing and resolving contradictions and disputes, improve the construction of platform of docking litigation and conciliation, and strengthen organic connection between litigation and non-litigation dispute settlement to promote the division before litigation of the disputes. We shall improve the reconciliation and mediation in the criminal procedure, promote administrative mediation and reconciliation and actively support the administrative organs to adjudicate the civil disputes closely related to administrative activities according to the law.

 　　21. Giving full play to the role of lawyers in litigation. We shall actively support lawyers to practice by law, guarantee the lawyers' right to practice, pay attention to lawyers' opinions on the division of complexity and simplicity for cases and the selection of judicial proceedings, and actively promote the lawyers to participate in mediation, agency appeals and other work.

 　　22. Guiding the parties to file a lawsuit honestly and rationally. We should intensify the crackdown on discreditable litigation actions such as false litigation and malicious lawsuits, and give full play to the leverage of litigation costs and lawyers' expenses to adjust the litigation actions of the parties to make the parties select proper methods to settle the disputes. If direct damages to the adverse party or third party are caused by the party due to apparent misconducts such as misuse of legal process and delay of undertaking litigation obligations, people's court may, on the basis of specific circumstances, support the reasonable compensation for lawyers' expenses proposed by law for the non-fault party and other valid claims.

Supreme People's Court  

September 12, 2016