Tianfu New Area Court Implements Three Initiatives to Elevate Foreign-Related Judicial Service StandardsSupporting the High-Quality Development of the Sichuan Free Trade Zone

In recent years, the Tianfu NewAreaCourt has actively harnessed its strengths in foreign-related judicial functions, concentrating its efforts on elevating the caliber of its work across threekeydimensions: the specialization of foreign-related judicial trials, the diversification of legal services, and the cultivation of specialized legal talent. The court’s exemplary efforts have been recognized by the Supreme Court, which bestowed upon it the title of“Exemplary Unit in Foreign-Related CommercialAffairsand Maritime Trial Work”. Moreover, the court’s initiatives:“Chengdu-Chongqing Free Trade Judicial Collaboration andInnovation” and“Dual-track Mediation Mechanism for Commercial Disputes”, have been handpicked by the Supreme Court as exemplary practices, serving as a beacon of inspiration for bolstering the development of free trade pilot zones.

The first initiative,“meticulous trials”, aims to strengthen judicial credibility. The court has implemented a specialized strategy for foreign-related civil and commercial trials, establishing a dedicated team to handle foreign-related commercial cases while distributing other cases among specialized trial teams for concurrent processing. To streamline the judicial processes, the court has inaugurated five free trade circuit courts for Railway Port, Aviation Port, Financial City, Intellectual Property, and Convention and Exhibition, respectively. Furthermore, it has established three working mechanisms, including a collegial panel and a specialized legal committee with cross-department composition, regular consultations on foreign-related trials, and bilingual white paper releases. To enhance its expertise, the court has established an expert advisory committee on free trade, appointing 18 industry experts to provide consultation and guidance on foreign-related trials. This has enabled the court to refine adjudication rules in areas such as China-EuropeRailwayExpress, free trade comprehensive protection zones, foreign exchange, and foreign-related tourism disputes. The court has also published two white papers on free trade trials. Over the past three years, the court has efficiently handled 125 foreign-related civil and commercial cases. One of these cases was selected as a typical case exemplifying the legal cooperation within the China-ASEANcommunitywith a sharedfuture. Another case, involving a free trade zone bonded warehouse, was selected as one of the top ten typical cases in 2021 that demonstrated the province’s commitment to protecting the private economy.

The second initiative,“building platforms”, aims to optimize judicial services.The court has capitalized on the concentration of high-quality legal service providers in the Tianfu Central Legal District to establish a“one-stop” multi-channel dispute resolution center for foreign-related commercialaffairs. To streamline the dispute resolution processes, the court has issued regulatory documents such asProcedures for the Ascertainment of Foreign Laws andGuidelines for One-Stop Work Mechanism for Litigation, Mediation, and Arbitration of Foreign-related Commercial Disputes (Trial). Moreover, the court has developed an integrated dispute resolution chain that encompassesthepreservation, mediation, confirmation, andtherelease of preservation.This comprehensive approach empowers parties to select the most appropriate resolution methods, centralizes the management of preservation execution affairs, and proactivelyensures thesmooth processes of themediation and arbitration.To foster collaboration, the court has signed cooperation agreements with 15 mediation organizations, including the International Commercial Mediation Center for the Belt and Road (BNRMC) and the Chengdu Foreign-related CommercialAffairsand Legal Services Center. The court has referred 44 foreign-related disputes to pre-litigation mediation and successfully mediated 13 cases duringthelitigation. The court has established and operated bilingual websites in Chinese and English,independently publishing15 types of English-language service manuals covering topics such as case filing, risk tips, and procedural guidances. These initiatives have significantly improved the litigation experience for foreign-related parties.

The third initiative,“gathering resources”, focuses on cultivating judicial talent.To leverage the language skills ofthestaff, the court has recruited 31 police officers with high-level foreign language proficiency to form the“Mengxi Translation and Research Society”, a foreign-related legal research group. This society has translated foursets of materialsconcerning legal practices andconducted sixseries of activities, such as the“English and American Law”IntensiveReadingCamp and the“Research and Translation Workshop”. Tocultivate professional resources, the court has established aforeign-related legal talent cultivation mechanism in collaboration with Sichuan University and Southwest University of Political Science and Law. As part of this mechanism, the court has appointed seasoned judges to provide guidances on thesis writing and practical applications, and has accepted 32 students majoring in relevant fields for internships. Furthermore, the court has been selected to participate in the Ministry of Education and Central Rule of Law Office’s innovativeprogram for collaboratively cultivating foreign-related legal talentsat thegrassroots courts. The court has alsobolstered its research efforts byspearheading research on seven foreign-related legal topics, such asLegal Issues of Cross-Border Banking Business under the Belt and Road Initiative. These research efforts have yielded impressive results, with three research outcomes winning awards and the court making 17 presentations at relevant conferences.

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