Civil Procedure Under the PRC Civil Procedure Law

Civil procedure in China is governed by the Civil Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China (中华人民共和国民事诉讼法), adopted in 1991 and amended in 2007, 2012, 2017, and 2021. The Law establishes a comprehensive framework for resolving civil disputes through the people’s courts, addressing jurisdiction, parties, evidence, trial procedures, appeals, retrials, enforcement, and special procedures. The amendments have progressively expanded access to justice, improved procedural efficiency, and adapted civil litigation to the digital age.

Jurisdiction

The Civil Procedure Law establishes rules for subject-matter jurisdiction, territorial jurisdiction, and exclusive jurisdiction. Subject-matter jurisdiction determines which level of court hears a case as court of first instance. Basic people’s courts (county/district level) hear the majority of first-instance civil cases. Intermediate people’s courts (municipal level) have jurisdiction over cases involving foreign elements, significant intellectual property disputes, major commercial controversies, and cases with high value in controversy. Higher people’s courts (provincial level) hear cases of regional significance within their provinces. The Supreme People’s Court hears cases of national significance.

Territorial jurisdiction is governed by the general rule that a civil action is brought in the court of the defendant’s place of domicile (原告就被告, Article 22). Parties may agree by contract to submit disputes to a specific court, subject to restrictions on exclusive jurisdiction. The 2012 amendments introduced provisions for internet courts and clarified that parties may agree to jurisdiction in online transactions.

Exclusive jurisdiction (专属管辖, Articles 33-34) applies to certain categories of cases: real property disputes are heard in the court of the property’s location; harbor operation disputes in the court of the harbor’s location; and inheritance disputes in the court of the decedent’s domicile or principal asset location. Exclusive jurisdiction cannot be altered by party agreement.

Parties and Standing

Parties to civil litigation include plaintiffs (原告, yuángào), defendants (被告, bèigào), and third parties (第三人, dìsān rén). Plaintiffs must have a direct legal interest in the dispute to establish standing (起诉条件, qǐsù tiáojiàn). The Civil Procedure Law (Article 119) requires that the plaintiff be a citizen, legal person, or other organization with a direct interest in the case, that the defendant be identified, that there be specific claims and factual basis, and that the case be within the court’s jurisdiction.

Third parties are classified as independent-claim third parties (有独立请求权第三人), who may intervene as plaintiffs, and no-independent-claim third parties (无独立请求权第三人), who have a legal interest in the outcome and may be joined by the court or by a party. In 2012, the Law introduced the third-party revocation action (第三人撤销之诉, Article 56), allowing third parties who could not participate in the original proceedings to challenge judgments that affect their interests.

Commencing Proceedings

A civil action is initiated by filing a statement of complaint (起诉状, qǐsù zhuàng) with the appropriate court. The complaint must specify the parties, the facts, the legal basis, and the relief sought. The court must decide within seven days whether to accept the case (立案, lì’àn). If the court rejects the complaint, it must issue a written ruling that may be appealed.

The 2007 amendments and subsequent reforms transformed case acceptance from a potentially discretionary process to a requirement-based system. The court’s docketing rate exceeds 90% of complaints filed. The case acceptance system has been further streamlined through online filing platforms, particularly in internet courts.

The complaint is served on the defendant, who must file a defense (答辩状, dábiàn zhuàng) within 15 days. Failure to file a defense does not prevent trial. The defendant may also file counterclaims within the same proceeding.

Evidence Rules

Evidence in civil proceedings includes documentary evidence, physical evidence, electronic data, witness testimony, expert opinions, inspection records, and party statements. The burden of proof follows the principle that “he who asserts must prove” (谁主张，谁举证). The 2019 SPC Provisions on Evidence in Civil Proceedings comprehensively reformed evidence rules, addressing burden of proof, presumption, judicial evaluation, and the admissibility of electronic evidence.

Electronic evidence has received particular attention. The SPC’s Provisions on Internet Courts (2018) recognize electronic data stored through blockchain as a valid method of evidence preservation. WeChat records, text messages, emails, and electronic contracts are routinely admitted as evidence. The Civil Procedure Law (Article 63) explicitly lists electronic data as a statutory evidence type since the 2012 amendments.

Parties may apply for court-ordered evidence collection (法院调查收集证据, Article 64) when they cannot obtain evidence independently due to objective obstacles. The court may also appoint expert evaluators (鉴定, jiàndìng) for technical issues. The 2019 reforms introduced rules on expert witnesses and technical investigators.

Trial Procedures

The trial is conducted by a collegiate panel (合议庭, héyì tíng) of three or more judges, or by a single judge for simple cases under summary procedure. Trials are conducted in open court, subject to exceptions for state secrets, personal privacy, and other statutory grounds. The trial proceeds through court investigation (法庭调查, fǎtíng diàochá), court debate (法庭辩论, fǎtíng biànlùn), mediation efforts, and final statements.

Court investigation begins with the parties’ statements, followed by witness examination, documentary evidence review, and expert opinion presentation. The presiding judge directs proceedings and may question parties and witnesses. After investigation, the court conducts debate in which parties present their legal arguments. The court may propose mediation at any stage.

The summary procedure (简易程序, Article 157) applies to simple cases where facts are clear, rights and obligations are definite, and disputes are limited. Summary procedure uses a single judge, simplified rules, and shorter time limits (three months). The small claims procedure (小额诉讼程序, Article 162), expanded in the 2021 amendments, applies to civil cases with low value under 50% of the annual local average wage. Small claims produce final, non-appealable judgments.

Appeals

A party may appeal a first-instance judgment within 15 days (civil appeals). The appellate court (second instance) reviews both fact and law. The appellate court may affirm the judgment and dismiss the appeal, reverse or modify the judgment if errors are found, or remand the case for retrial if the facts are unclear or procedural errors occurred. The appellate judgment is final and binding (终审判决, zhōngshěn pànjué) from the date of service.

The appeal period for civil judgments is 15 days; for civil rulings on procedural matters, it is 10 days. The appellate court must conclude the appeal within three months of filing, extendable by court approval. Appeals have suspensive effect: the judgment is not enforceable pending appeal.

Retrial (Zai Shen)

The retrial procedure (再审, Article 198-213) provides an extraordinary remedy for reopening final judgments that contain material errors. Grounds for retrial include: insufficient evidence supporting the original factual findings; application of the wrong law; procedural violations affecting the outcome; new evidence that could not have been presented earlier; corruption or misconduct by judicial personnel; and other statutory grounds.

Retrial may be initiated by petition of a party (当事人申请再审), by decision of the court that rendered the judgment (法院决定再审), or by prosecutorial counterappeal (检察院抗诉, Article 208). The Supreme People’s Court selectively hears retrial cases that raise significant legal questions. The retrial procedure serves as a substitute for formal third-instance appeal, providing a mechanism for correcting errors without establishing a full third tier of review.

Enforcement

Judgments are enforced by the enforcement division (执行局, zhíxíng jú) of the people’s court that rendered the judgment. The enforcement period is two years from the effective date of the judgment. Enforcement measures include freezing and seizing bank accounts, auctioning property, restricting travel, imposing fines, and detaining judgment debtors for non-compliance.

The 2018–2020 enforcement campaign significantly improved enforcement rates. The Supreme People’s Court established a nationwide enforcement information system (执行信息公开平台) and a blacklist of dishonest judgment debtors (失信被执行人名单). Blacklisted persons face restrictions on travel by air and high-speed rail, restrictions on credit and financial transactions, and reduced government contracting eligibility.

The 2017 Amendments

The 2017 amendments to the Civil Procedure Law focused on improving the enforcement system and strengthening protections against false litigation. The amendments introduced: enhanced penalties for obstructing enforcement; expanded authority for courts to investigate assets; strengthened rules against malicious litigation (虚假诉讼, xūjiǎ sùsòng); and improved coordination between courts in cross-regional enforcement.

The 2021 Amendments

The 2021 amendments, effective 1 January 2022, represented the most comprehensive revision since 2012. Key changes included: expansion of the small claims procedure to handle disputes up to 50% of the annual average wage; introduction of online litigation rules, recognizing electronic service as a primary method (Article 90); expansion of the streamlined judicial procedure for simple cases; clarification of electronic evidence rules; enhanced provisions for public interest litigation by procuratorates; and improved mechanisms for cross-regional enforcement coordination.

The amendments also addressed the growing role of internet courts, providing statutory recognition for fully digital proceedings and authorizing expanded use of AI-assisted adjudication for routine cases. The 2021 amendments reflected the civil justice system’s adaptation to digital transformation and the increasing caseload pressures on Chinese courts.