CIVIL PROCEDURE LAW OF THE PEOPLE S REPUBLIC OF CHINA （3）

CHAPTER X COMPULSORY MEASURES AGAINST IMPAIRMENT OF CIVIL ACTIONS
　　Article 100. If a defendant is required to appear in court, but, having been served twice with subpoena, still refuses to do so without justified reason, the people s court may summon him to court by a warrant.
　　Article 101. Participants in proceedings and other persons shall abide by the court rules.
　　Should any person violate the court rules, the people s court may reprimand him and order him to leave the court, or impose a fine or detention on him.
　　With respect to any person who seriously disrupts the court procedure by making an uproar in the court or assaulting the courtroom, or insulting, slandering, threatening, or beating the judicial personnel, the people s court shall investigate for criminal responsibility according to law; if the circumstances are minor, a fine or detention may be imposed on the offender.
　　Article 102. If a participant in the proceedings or any other person commits any of the following acts, the people s court shall, in accordance with the law, investigate for criminal responsibility; if the circumstances are minor and do not constitute a crime, the offender shall be fined or detained:
　　(1) forging or destroying significant evidence, which would obstruct the trial of a case by the people s court;
　　(2) using violence, threats or subornation to hinder a witness from giving testimony, or instigating, suborning, or coercing others to commit perjury;
　　(3) concealing, transferring, selling or destroying property that has been sealed up or distrained, or that has been made an inventory of and has been put under his care according to instruction, or transferring the property that has been freezed;
　　(4) insulting, slandering, incriminating with false charges, beating up or retaliating against judicial personnel, participants in proceedings, witnesses, interpreters, experts, inspectors, or personnel assisting in execution; or
　　(5) using violence, threats or other means to hinder judicial personnel from performing their duties; or
　　(6) refusing to comply with the legally effective judgments or orders of the people s court.
　　Article 103. With respect to a unit under an obligation to assist in investigation and execution that commits any of the following acts, the people s court may, apart from instructing it to perform its obligation to assist, also impose a fine:
　　(1) refusing or obstructing, by units concerned, investigations and collection of evidence made by the people s court;
　　(2) after receiving a notification on assistance in execution from the people s court, refusing by banks, credit cooperatives or other units dealing with savings deposits to assist in inquiring, freezing or transferring relevant deposit.
　　(3) after receiving a notification on assistance in execution from the people s court, refusing by units concerned to assist in withholding the income of the party subject to execution, handling formalities for transferring relevant certificates and passing on relevant negotiable instrument, certificates, or other property; or
　　(4) refusing to provide other orbligatory assistance in execution.
　　With respect to a unit that commits any of the acts specified in the preceding paragraph, the people s court may impose a fine on the principal leading personnel of the unit or the person directly responsible. The people s court may also put forward a proposal on the imposition of disciplinary sanctions to the supervisory organ and organs concerned.
　　Article 104. A fine on an individual shall be not more than Renminbi, 1, 000 yuan. A fine on a unit shall be not less than Renminbi 1,000 yuan and not more than Renminbi 30,000 yuan.
　　A detention period shall be not longer than 15 days.
　　The people s court shall deliver detained persons to a public security organ for custody. The people s court may decide to grant the detained person an early release if he admits and corrects his wrongdoing.
　　Article 105. Imposition of summons by warrant, fine or detention shall be subject to approval of the president of a people s court. Warrants shall be issued for carrying out summonses by warrant.
　　Letters of decision shall be issued for fines and detentions. If an offender is not satisfied with the decision, he may apply to a people s court at a higher level for reconsideration that could be granted only once. The execution of the decision shall not be suspended during the time of reconsideration.
　　Article 106. Decision on the adoption of compulsory measures against impairment of civil actions shall be made by the people s court. Any unit or individual that extorts a debt by illegitimate detention of a person or illegal distrainment of a property shall be *investigated for criminal responsibility according to law, or shall be punished with a detention or fine.
　　CHAPTER XI LITIGATION COSTS
　　Article 107. Any party filing a civil lawsuit shall pay a case acceptance fee in accordance with relevant regulations. With respect to cases concerning property, the party shall pay other litigation costs, in addition to case acceptance fee.
　　Parties that have true difficulty in paying litigation costs may, in accordance with relevant regulations, apply to the people s court for suspension or reduction of or exemption from the payment.
　　Procedures for the payment of litigation costs shall be formulated separately.
　　PART TWO TRIAL PROCEDURE
　　CHAPTER XII ORDINARY PROCEDURE OF FIRST INSTANCE
　　SECTION 1 BRINGING A SUIT AND ACCEPTING A CASE
　　Article 108. The following conditions must be met when a suit is brought:
　　(1) the plaintiff must be an individual, legal person or any other organization that has a direct interest in the case;
　　(2) there must be a specific defendant;
　　(3) there must be a concrete claim, a factual basis, and a cause for the suit; and
　　(4) the suit must be within the scope of acceptance for civil lawsuits of the people s courts and within the specific jurisdiction of the people s court where it is filed.
　　Article 109. When bringing a suit, a bill of complaint shall be submitted to the people s court, and copies of the bill shall be prepared according to the number of defendants.
　　If a plaintiff has true difficulty in writing a bill of complaint, he may lodge his complaint orally, and the court shall transcribe it and inform the other party.
　　Article 110. A bill of complaint shall clearly set forth the following:
　　(1) the name, sex, age, ethnic status, occupation, work unit and address of each person who is a party to the case or, if a party is a legal person or any. other organization, its name, address and legal representative s or principal leading personnel s name and position;
　　(2) the claim of the lawsuit and the facts and grounds on which the lawsuit is based; and
　　(3) any evidence and its source, as well as the names and addresses of witnesses.
　　Article 111. The people s court must accept the lawsuits filed in conformity with the provisions of Article 109 of this Law. With respect to lawsuits described below, the people s court shall handle them according to their specific circumstances:
　　(1) With respect to those within the scope of acceptance for administrative lawsuits in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Law, the people s court shall notify the plaintiff to institute an administrative lawsuit;
　　(2) According to legal provisions, if both parties have on voluntary basis reached a written agreement on arbitration concerning contract disputes that they shall apply to an arbitration agency for arbitration, and may not institute legal proceedings in a people s court, the people s court shall notify the plaintiff to apply to an arbitration agency for arbitration;
　　(3) With respect to disputes which, according to law, should be handled by other organs, the people s court shall notify the plaintiff to apply to the relevant organ for settlement;
　　(4) With respect to cases that are not under its jurisdiction, the people s court shall notify the plaintiff to bring a lawsuit in the competent people s court;
　　(5) With respect to cases in which a judgment or order has already taken legal effect, but one party again brings a suit, the people s court shall notify that party to file an appeal instead, with the exception of those cases in which an order is rendered by the people s court allowing the withdrawal of an action;
　　(6) If cases that are not permitted by law to be filed within a specified period are filed during the same period, they shall not be accepted;
　　(7) If a divorce suit in which a judgment has been made not granting the divorce, or in which both parties have become reconciled after conciliation, or in which the plaintiff has withdrawn the suit, or any suit concerning adoptive relationship in which a judgment has been made or conciliation conducted to maintain the adoptive relationship is refilled within six months without new developments and reasons, it shall not be accepted, unless the suit is brought by the defendant of the original case.
　　Article 112. When a people s court receives a bill of complaint or an oral complaint and finds after review that it meets the requirements for acceptance, it shall file the case within seven days and notify the parties concerned; if the complaint does not meet the requirements for acceptance, the court shall within seven days order that the complaint be rejected. If the complainant has an objection against the order, he may file an appeal.
　　SECTION 2 PREPARATIONS FOR TRIAL
　　Article 113. The people s court shall send a copy of the bill of complaint to the defendant within five days from its acceptance of the case, and the defendant shall file a bill of defence within 15 days from his receipt of the copy of the bill of complaint.
　　If the defendant files a bill of defence, the people s court shall send a copy of the bill of defence to the plaintiff within five days from its receipt. Failure by the defendant to file a bill of defence shall not prevent the case from being heard by the people s court.
　　Article 114. The People s court shall, in relation to cases whose acceptance has been decided, notify the parties orally or in the notification on case acceptance or in notification on response to prosecution, of their relevant litigation rights and obligations.
　　Article 115. The parties shall be promptly notified after members of the collegial panel are decided.
　　Article 116. The judicial personnel must carefully examine the case materials and carry out investigation and collection of necessary evidence.
　　Article 117. The personnel sent by a people s court to conduct an investigation shall first show their credentials to the person being investigated. The written record of an investigation shall be checked by the person investigated and then signed or sealed by both the investigator and the investigated.
　　Article 118. A people s court may, when necessary, entrust a people s court in another locality with an investigation.
　　The entrusting people s court shall clearly set out the matters and requirements of the entrusted investigation. The entrusted people s court may on its own initiative conduct supplementary investigation.
　　The entrusted people s court shall complete the investigation within 30 days after receiving the rogatory letter. If for some reason it cannot complete the investigation, it shall notify the entrusting people s court in writing within the above-mentioned time limit.
　　Article 119. If a party who must participate in a joint lawsuit fails to participate in the proceedings, the people s court shall notify it to participate.
　　SECTION 3 TRIAL IN COURT
　　Article 120. Civil cases in a people s court shall be heard in public, except for those that involve state secrets or the private affairs of individuals or are otherwise provided by law.
　　A divorce case or a case involving trade secrets may not be heard in public if a party so requests.
　　Article 121. In handling civil cases, the people s courts shall, whenever necessary and possible, send out circuit tribunals to hold trials on the spot.
　　Article 122. The people s court shall notify the parties and other participants in civil case three days before the opening of a court session. If a case is to be heard in public, the names of the parties, the cause of action and the time and location of the court session shall be announced publicly.
　　Article 123. Before a court session is called to order, the court clerk shall ascertain whether or not the parties and other participants in the case are present and announce the rules of order of the court.
　　At the beginning of a trial, the presiding judge shall check the parties present, announce the cause of action and the names of the judicial personnel and court clerks, inform the parties of their relevant litigation rights and obligations and ask the parties whether or not they wish to apply for the withdrawal of any court personnel.
　　Article 124. Courtroom investigation shall be conducted in the following order:
　　(1) presentation of the statements by the parties;
　　(2) informing the witnesses of their rights and obligations, giving testimony by the witnesses and reading of the statements of absentee witnesses;
　　(3) presentation of documentary evidence, material evidence and audio-visual reference material;
　　(4) reading of the expert conclusions; and
　　(5) reading of the records of inquests.
　　Article 125. The parties may present new evidence during a court session.
　　With the permission of the court, the parties may put questions to witnesses, expert witnesses and inspectors.
　　The parties may request a new investigation expert evaluation or inquest, subject to the approval of the people s court.
　　Article 126. Additional claims by the plaintiff, counterclaims by the defendant and third-party claims related to the case may be tried together.
　　Article 127. Court debates shall be conducted in the following order:
　　(1) presentation of oral statements by the plaintiff and his agents ad litem;
　　(2) response by the defendant and his agents ad litem;
　　(3) presentation of oral statements or defence by the third party and its agents ad litem;
　　(4) debate between the two sides.
　　At the end of the court debate, the presiding judge shall ask each side to present his final arguments, with the plaintiff going first, then the defendant, and then the third party.
　　Article 128. At the end of the court debate, a judgment shall be made according to law. Where conciliation is possible prior to the rendering of a judgment, conciliation effort may be conducted; if conciliation proves to be unsuccessful, a judgment shall be made without delay.
　　Article 129. If a plaintiff has bee served with a legal subpoena from a people s court and refuses to appear in court without justified reason, or if he walks out during a court session without the permission of the court, the court may consider the plaintiff has applied to withdraw his complaint; if the defendant files a counterclaim, the court may make a judgment by default.
　　Article 130. If a defendant has been served with a legal subpoena from a people s court and refuses to appear in court without justified reason, or if he walks out during a court session without the permission of the court, the court may make a judgment by default.
　　Article 131. If a plaintiff applies to withdraw his complaints before judgment is pronounces, the people s court shall make an order regarding whether to grant approval.
　　If the withdrawal of complaints is disallowed by an order, and the palintiff, after having been served with a subpoena, refuses to appear in court without justified reason, the people s court may make a judgment by default.
　　Article 132. Under any of the following circumstances, court session for trail may be postponed:
　　(1) the parties of other participants in the proceedings required to appear in court fail to do so for justified reasons;
　　(2) a party requests the withdrawal of a member of the judicial personnel only presently;
　　(3) it is necessary to summon new witnesses to court, collect new evidence, make a new expert evaluation, hold another inquest, or make supplementary investigation; or
　　(4) other circumstances arise that warrant the postponement.
　　Article 133. The court clerk shall make a written record of the entire court proceedings, which shall be signed by the judicial personnel and the court clerk.
　　The court record shall be read out in court, or the parties and other participants in the proceedings may be notified to read the record while in court or within five days. If the parties or other participants in the proceedings consider that there are omissions or errors in the record of their statements, they shall have the right to apply for additions or corrections. If such additions or corrections are not made, the application shall be written into the case file.
　　The court record shall be signed or sealed by the parties and other participants in the proceedings. Refusal to do so shall be recorded in a note to be attached to the file.
　　Article 134. The people s court shall publicly pronounce its judgment in all case, whether publicly tried or not.
　　If a judgment is pronounced in court, the written judgment shall be issued and delivered within ten days; if a judgment is pronounced later on a fixed date, the written judgment shall be issued immediately after the pronouncement.
　　Upon pronouncement of a judgment, the parties must be informed of their right to file an appeal, the time limit for appeal and the court to which they may appeal.
　　Upon pronouncement of a divorce judgment, the parties must be informed not to remarry before the judgment takes legal effect.
　　Article 135. A people s court shall, in handling a case to which ordinary procedure is applied, close it within six months from filing the case. Where an extension of the term is necessary for special circumstances, a six-month extension may be given subject to the approval of the president of the said court. Any further extension shall be reported to the people s court at a higher level for approval.
SECTION 4 SUSPENSION AND CONCLUSION OF A LAWSUIT
　　Article 136. A lawsuit shall be suspended, if it involves any of the following circumstances:
　　(1) one of the parties dies and it is necessary to wait for his to make clear whether he would participate in the proceedings;
　　(2) one of the parties has lost the capacity to engage in litigation and his agent ad litem has not been designated yet;
　　(3) the legal person or any other organization as one of the parties has terminated, and the person succeeding to its rights and obligations has not been determined yet;
　　(4) one of the parties is unable to participate in the proceedings for reasons of force majeure;
　　(5) the current case is dependent on the results of the trial of another case that has not yet been concluded; or
　　(6) other circumstances arise that warrant the suspension of the lawsuit.
　　The proceedings shall resume after the causes of the suspension have been eliminated.
　　Article 137. A lawsuit shall be concluded, if it involves any of the following circumstances:
　　(1) the plaintiff dies without an heir, or the heir waives his right of litigation;
　　(2) the defendant dies without estate and without a person who should succeed to his obligations;
　　(3) one of the parties in a divorce case dies.
　　(4) one of the parties in a case involving claims for overdue alimony, support for children or elders or a claim for the termination of adoptive relationship dies.
　　SECTION 5 JUDGMENT AND ORDER
　　Article 138. A judgment shall clearly set forth the following:
　　(1) the cause of action, the claims, and the facts of and reasons for the dispute;
　　(2) the facts and reasons on which the judgment is based and the law is applied;
　　(3) the result of the judgment and the litigation costs to be borne; and
　　(4) the time limit for filing an appeal and the appellate court with which the appeal may be filed.
　　The judgment shall be signed by the judicial personnel and the court clerk, and the seal of the people s court shall be affixed to it.
　　Article 141. If some of the facts in a case being tried by the people s court are already evident, the court may pass judgment on those facts first.
　　Article 140. Orders shall be applicable to the following:
　　(1) rejection of a lawsuit;
　　(2) objection to the jurisdiction of a court;
　　(3) rejection of a complaint;
　　(4) property preservation and preliminary execution;
　　(5) approval or disapproval of withdrawal of a lawsuit;
　　(6) suspension or conclusion of a lawsuit;
　　(7) correction of slips of pen in the judgment;
　　(8) suspension or termination of execution;
　　(9) cancellation of or refusal to enforce an arbitration award;
　　(10) refusal to enforce a document on creditor s rights which has been rendered executory by the notary office;
　　(11) other matters to be decided by an order.
　　An appeal may be lodged against an order applied to items (1), (2) and (3) of the preceding paragraph.
　　A written order shall be signed by the judicial personnel and the court clerk, and the seal of the people s court shall be affixed to it. If an order is issued orally, it shall be entered in the record.
　　Article 141. All judgments and orders of the Supreme People s Court, as well as judgments and orders that may not be appealed against according to law or have not been appealed against within the prescribed time limit, shall be legally effective.
　　CHAPTER XIII SUMMARY PROCEDURE
　　Article 142. When trying simple civil cases in which the facts are evident, relationship of rights and obligations is definite, and disputes are minor, the basic people s courts and the tribunals dispatched by them may apply the summary procedure stipulated in his Chapter.
　　Article 143. In simple civil cases, the plaintiff may lodge his complaint orally.
　　The two parties may appear at the same time at a basic people s court or a tribunal dispatched by it to request a solution of their dispute. The basic people s court or the tribunal dispatched by it may try the case immediately or set a date for the trial.
　　Article 144. In trying a simple civil case, the basic people s court or the tribunal dispatched by it may at any time use simplified methods to summon the parties and witnesses.
　　Article 145. Simple civil cases shall be tried by a single judge alone and the trial of such cases shall not be restricted by the provisions of Articles 123, 125, and 128 of this Law.
　　Article 146. The people s court shall, in handling a case to which summary procedure is applied, close it within three months from filing the case.
　　CHAPTER XIV PROCEDURE OF SECOND INSTANCE
　　Article 147. If a party refuses to accept a judgment of first instance of a local people s court, he shall have the right to file an appeal with the people s court at the next higher level within 15 days from the date on which the written judgment is served.
　　If a party refuses to accept an order of first instance of a local people s court, he shall have the right to file an appeal with a people s court at the next higher level within 10 days from the date on which the written order is served.
　　Article 148. In filing an appeal, an appeal petition shall be submitted. An appeal petition shall include the names of the parties, the names of the legal persons and their legal representatives or names of other organizations and their principal leading personnel; the name of the people s court where the case was originally tried; the case file number and the cause of action; and the claims of the appeal and reasons for it.
　　Article 149. An appeal petition shall be submitted through the people s court which originally tried the case, and copies of the petition shall be prepared according to the number of people in the other party or the representatives thereof.
　　If a party appeals directly to a people s court of second instance, the court shall within five days transfer the appeal petition to the people s court which originally tried the case.
　　Article 150. Within five days after receiving an appeal petition, the people s court which originally tried the case shall serve copies of the appeal petition on the other party. After receiving the copies of the appeal petition, the other party shall submit its defence within 15 days. The people s court shall, within five days from receiving the defence, serve copies of the defence on the appellant. Failure by the other party to submit a defence shall not prevent the case from being tried by the people s court.
　　After receiving the appeal petition and the defence, the people s court which originally tried the case shall, within five days, deliver them together with the entire case file and evidence to the people s court of second instance.
　　Article 151. With respect to an appealed case, the people s court of second instance shall review the relevant facts and the application of the law.
　　Article 152. When handling an appealed case, the people s court of second instance shall form a collegial panel and conduct a hearing. Having verified the facts of the case by consulting the files, making necessary investigations and questioning the parties, if the collegial panel considers that it is not necessary to hold a hearing, it may make a judgment or order without a hearing.
　　A people s court of second instance may try an appealed case in its own court or in the place where the case originated or where the people s court which originally tried the case is located.
　　Article 153. After hearing an appealed case, the people s court of second instance shall handle it respectively according to the conditions set forth below:
　　(1) If the facts were clearly ascertained and the law was correctly applied in the original judgment, the appeal shall be rejected by judgment and the original judgment shall be sustained;
　　(2) If the law was incorrectly applied in the original judgment, the judgment shall be amended according to law;
　　(3) If in the original judgment the facts were incorrectly ascertained or were not clearly ascertained and the evidence was inconclusive, the judgment shall be rescinded and the case remanded by an order to the original people s court for retrial, or the people s court of second instance may amend the judgment after investigating and clarifying the facts; or
　　(4) If in the original judgment a violation of the prescribed procedure may have affected the correctness of the judgment, the judgment shall be rescinded and the case remanded by an order to the original people s court for retrial.
　　The parties may appeal against the judgment or order rendered in a retrial of their case.
　　Article 154. A people s court of second instance shall use orders in all cases of appeal against the orders made by the people s court of first instance.
　　Article 155. In handling an appealed case, a people s court of second instance may conduct conciliation. If an agreement is reached through conciliation, a conciliation statement shall be made and signed by the judicial personnel and the court clerk, and the seal of the people s court shall be affixed to it. After the conciliation statement has been served, the judgment of the people s court which originally tried the case shall be considered rescinded.
　　Article 156. If an appellant requests to withdraw his appeal before a people s court of second instance pronounces its judgment, the court shall give an order with regard to approving or disapproving the request.
　　Article 157. When a people s court of second instance handles an appealed case, it shall apply the ordinary procedure for trials of first instance, unless otherwise stipulated in this Chapter.
　　Article 158. The judgments and orders of a people s court of second instance shall be final.
　　Article 159. In trying an appealed case against a judgment, the people s court shall make a final judgment within three months after the case was filed as one of second instance. Any extension of the term necessitated by special circumstances shall be subject to the approval of the president of the said court.
　　In trying an appealed case against an order, the people s court shall make a final order within 30 days after the case was filed as one of second instance.