· Document Number：No. 79 [2009] of Guangdong Higher People’s Court

· Area of Law： Judicial Assistance Legislative Affairs

· Level of Authority： Local Judicial Documents

· Date issued：10-19-2009

· Status： Effective

· Issuing Authority： Guangdong Province

Measures for the Supervision and Administration of the Quality of Cases in Courts of Guangdong Province
(No. 79 [2009] of Guangdong Higher People's Court October 19, 2009)
I. General Provisions
Article 1 These Measures are formulated with a view to strengthening the administration of adjudication, regulating and unifying the supervision and administration of the quality of cases in the people's courts at all levels throughout this Province, establishing a scientific and effective system for the supervision and administration of the quality of cases, improving trial quality and ensuring the impartiality of justice.
Article 2 The supervision and administration of the quality of cases is a systematic internal administration task of the people's court.
The people's court shall establish a routine internal system for the supervision and administration of the quality of cases.
Article 3 The people's court shall supervise and administer the quality of cases by examining, determining and handling the cases “with possible quality problems”. The cases “with possible quality problems” refer to:
1. cases amended;
2. cases remanded for retrial;
3. cases under complaint which are considered to have quality problems upon examination of the relevant department;
4. cases which are ordered to be tried or be retried;
5. cases in which the death penalty is not approved; and
6. cases which are amended by the people's court at the higher level, but about which the original judgment is considered to have no quality problem after discussion by the judicial committee of the people's court at the lower level and for which an examination application is filed to the people's court at the higher level.
Article 4 The supervision and administration of the quality of cases shall be subject to the principle of combining self-checks with the inspections.
Article 5 The judicial committee of the people's court at each level shall uniformly supervise and administer the quality of cases in that court.
The office of the judicial committee or any other judicial administration department shall be responsible for the routine administration, supervision, coordination, information exchange and other tasks relevant to the supervision of the quality of cases.
Article 6 The president of the people's court at each level or the deputy president authorized by him shall be in charge of the supervision and administration of the quality of cases, and be responsible for making proposals to the judicial committee about discussing or approving the handling of relevant matters.
Article 7 A trial division of the people's court at each level shall directly supervise and administer the quality of the cases tried by this division and be responsible for the self-check of the cases “with possible quality problems”.
The director of each trial division shall be the first person responsible for the supervision and administration of the quality of the cases tried by that division.
Article 8 Apart from the functions as described in Article 7, a trial supervision division of the people's court at each level shall be responsible for inspecting the cases which are tried by other trial divisions of the same people's court and which are “with possible quality problems”.
Article 9 The people's court at the higher level shall guide, coordinate and supervise the supervision and administration of the quality of cases in the people's courts at the lower level.
As to a case with possible quality problems in the people's court at the lower level, the people's court at the higher lever may order the people's court at the lower level to examine it, or may have the case files transferred to itself for examination.
II. Procedures
Article 10 The cases concluded by the people's court at the higher level for return shall be uniformly returned to the case-filing division of the people's court at the lower level, which shall uniformly fill out the Statistical Form of Case Files Returned by the Court at the Higher Level.
The case-filing division shall, within 5 working days as of the date on which it signs a receipt of the case files returned by the people's court at the higher level, give a case supervision and administration file number to the case which the people's court at the higher level has amended, has remanded for retrial, has given a disapproval of the death penalty, has ordered for retrial or has ordered for trial, fill out a Form of Registration of Self-check Cases Transferred for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the case quality supervision and administration department for registration, and fill out a Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the pertinent trial division for self-check.
As to a case (including mediation case) for which the court makes a retrial ruling under its functions regardless of the effective judgment made by itself, the case-filing division shall, according to the serial order of the quality supervision and administration file number as listed in the Form of Registration of Self-check Cases Transferred for Case Quality Supervision and Administration under the preceding paragraph, give a quality supervision and administration file number to the retrial case and then submit it and the retrial case to the trial supervision division.
Article 11 As to a case amended by the people's court at the higher level, if the judicial committee of the people's court at the lower level considers upon discussion that the original judgment has no quality problem, the people's court at the lower level may apply to the case-filing division of the people's court at the higher level for examination and submit to it a Form of Application for Case Quality Supervision, and initiate the procedures for the supervision of the quality of the new judgment made by the people's court at the higher level. The case-filing division of the people's court at the higher level shall, within 5 working days as of the day when it receives the quality supervision application of the people's court at the lower level, give it a case quality supervision and administration file number, fill out a Form of Registration of Self-check Cases Transferred for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the quality supervision and administration department for registration, and fill out a Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the pertinent trial division for self-check.
Article 12 A case under quality problem complaint refers to a case which is filed upon the transfer of relevant departments or on the complaint, appeal or letters, etc. and may well involve the quality of any case (including the mediation case) about which the judgment made by the court has already become effective but which fails to be filed or does not qualify for being treated as an appeal or petition for retrial.
After the disciplinary and supervisory department, inspection institution, trial supervision division, office of the judicial committee, complaint-handling department or any other department receives a complaint against a case “with quality problems”, and if any of them considers upon examination that the said case “possibly has quality problems”, it shall timely transfer the relevant materials to the case-filing division. The case-filing division shall, within 5 working days, fill out the Form of Registration of Self-check Cases Transferred for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the case quality supervision and administration department for registration, and fill out a Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it to the pertinent trial division for self-check.
Article 13 The case-filing division shall, within 2 working days after the completion of the case-filing of a quality supervision case, transfer the relevant materials of the case to the pertinent trial division for self-check.
Article 14 The trial division shall take the collegiate system for the self-check of the case.
Article 15 After a relevant trial division receives the case files transferred by the case-filing division, the director of the trial division shall, within 3 working days, order the original handling judge, members of the original collegiate bench or other judges of the trial division to make a self-check. A case which is remanded for retrial, given a disapproval of the death penalty, ordered for retrial or ordered for trial, or for which there are only complaint letters and materials but without case files, the pertinent trial division shall, on its own initiative, fetch the trial files from the same court for self-check within 3 working days. The self-checker and the collegiate bench shall, within 30 days after signing the receipt of the case files and materials for self-check, finish the self-check of the case and the review of the collegiate bench, fill out the self-check part of the Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it and the materials of the case to the director of the trial division for examination. A self-check report shall include the following:
(1) the basic information about the case;
(2) the causes for amendment, being remanded for retrial or being complained about, or the causes for being ordered for retrial, ordered for trial or for disapproval of death penalty, or the causes for the case of the people's court at the lower level which has been amended, but is considered to have no quality problem upon discussion of the judicial committee;
(3) analysis of whether there are quality problems as well as the nature and extent of the existing problems; and
(4) opinions on dealing with the problems.
Article 16 If the self-checker and the collegiate bench are unable to finish the self-check within the prescribed time limit under an actual special circumstance, they shall file an application to the director of the trial division for extending the time limit for the self-check and state in the self-check form the causes or reasons for the extension application. They shall, upon examination and approval of the director of the trial division within the time limit for self-check, submit the said application to the case quality supervision and administration department for examination and approval. The time limit for self-check may be extended for 15 days upon examination and approval of the case quality supervision and administration department. The time limit for self-check may be extended for 2 times at most.
Article 17 The director of the pertinent trial division shall, within 10 working days after receiving the self-check materials, sign his examination opinions in the Form, and then submit the Form and the case files and materials to the trial supervision division for inspection.
Article 18 Every month, the judicial statistical department shall collect the data on cases affirmed, amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial, ordered for trial, given disapproval of death penalty, with quality problems complained about, during the second instance, and those amended but confirmed to have no quality problem by the judicial committee of the people's court at the lower level, prepare a statistical form and submit it to the person-in-charge of the court and to the case quality supervision and administration department.
The case quality supervision and administration department shall check whether the pertinent trial divisions have timely made a self-check of the relevant cases and have submitted self-check reports according to the statistical form. It shall circulate the check information once every half year and submit it to the person-in-charge of the court in addition.
Article 19 After the trial supervision division receives the materials on the self-check of cases from a trial division, its director shall designate a collegiate bench for inspection within 3 working days.
Article 20 As to a case accepted by the trial supervision division and amended by the people's court at the higher level, the trial supervision division shall report it to the case quality supervision and administration department after finishing the self-check according to the aforesaid self-check procedures. The case quality supervision and administration department shall designate a collegiate bench for inspection within 3 working days.
Article 21 The trial supervision division shall adopt the collegiate bench system for the inspection of cases.
Article 22 The judges and the collegiate bench designated for the trial supervision division shall finish the inspection and review of the case within 60 days from the date of receipt of the inspection case, fill out the inspection part in the Form of Registration Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit the Form and the case materials to the director of the trial supervision division for examination.
Article 23 If the inspectors and the collegiate bench are unable to finish the inspection within the prescribed time limit under an actual special circumstance, they shall file an application to the director of the trial supervision division for extending the time limit for the inspection and state in the inspection form the causes or reasons for the extension application. They shall, upon examination and approval of the director of the trial supervision division within the time limit for inspection, submit the said application to the case quality supervision and administration department for examination and approval. The time limit for inspection may be extended for 30 days upon examination and approval of the case quality supervision and administration department.
Article 24 As to a case remanded for retrial, given a disapproval of death penalty or ordered for retrial, if the trial supervision division considers it necessary to deal with the said case after the retrial, it shall deal with it in light of different circumstances after the retrial is concluded:
1. If the new judgment is identical with the original judgment and if no appeal or protest is filed or the second instance affirms the original judgment after the appeal or protest, it shall not inspect the case any longer; or
2. Except for the first circumstance, it shall inspect any other case after the final judgment enters into force.
Article 25 As to the inspection of a case amended, remanded for retrial, given a disapproval of death penalty or ordered for retrial or trial, the trial supervision division shall put forward its opinions in light of the following circumstances:
1. If the case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial, ordered for examination or given a disapproval of the death penalty as a result of the provision of the new evidence other than quality problems, it shall put forward an opinion that the case has no quality problem; or
2. If it considers that the case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial, ordered for examination or given a disapproval of the death penalty as a result of unclear facts, insufficient evidence, improper application of law or unlawful procedures, it shall suggest discussion by the judicial committee.
Article 26 As to the inspection of a case under quality problem complaint, the trial supervision division shall put forward its opinions in light of the following circumstances:
1. For a case in which the facts are clear, the evidence is sufficient and the application of law is correct, it shall suggest that the pertinent trial division make a reply to the person who filed the complaint;
2. For a case in which there is no mistake in matters of principle but there are defects, it shall suggest that the pertinent trial division do a good job in persuading the person who filed the complaint, and simultaneously analyze and summarize the existing problems; and
3. For a case in which the determination of facts or evidence is obviously improper, or the application of law is wrong or which is seriously in violation of the litigation procedures, it shall suggest that the judicial committee make a decision upon discussion.
Article 27 As to an amended case in which the judicial committee of the people's court at the lower level considers upon discussion that there is no quality problem, if an application is filed to the people's court at the higher level for examination and if the trial supervision division considers upon examination that the new judgment is indeed improper, it shall put forward its inspection opinions and suggest that the judicial committee make a discussion.
Article 28 If the inspectors and the collegiate bench find, during the course of inspecting a case, any clue showing the possibility of violation of law or discipline committed by the original handlers or the personnel relevant to the trial of the case and if the case is not an inspection case assigned by the disciplinary inspection and supervision department, the inspectors and the collegiate bench shall fill out a separate Form of Clues of Possible Violation of Law or Discipline Found During Case Quality Supervision and Administration and submit it, the Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration as well as the inspection materials to the director of the trial supervision division for examination.
Article 29 The director of the trial supervision division shall, within 10 working days after receiving the Form of Registration of Self-check or Inspection Cases for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and the inspection materials, sign his examination opinions in the form and submit them to the president of the court, who is in charge of the case quality supervision and administration, for examination, and accompany them by the clue of violation of law or discipline, if any. The president of the court, who is in charge of the case quality supervision and administration, shall, according to the inspection conclusion, decide whether to submit the case to the judicial committee for discussion.
Article 30 After the inspection, the president of the court, who is in charge of the case quality supervision and administration, shall deal with the case in light of different circumstances:
1. As to a case which is considered to have no quality problem or only have some defects and which is unnecessary to be submitted to the judicial committee for discussion, the case quality supervision and administration department shall fill out a Notice about Handling Opinions for Case Quality Supervision and Administration and simultaneously notify the director of the relevant trial division, self-checker, director of the trial supervision division and inspectors of the inspection result;
2. If he considers it necessary to make further inspection, he shall return the inspection case to the trial supervision division for further inspection. The trial supervision division shall, within 15 working days, finish the re-inspection of the inspection case returned by the president of the court, who is in charge of the case quality supervision and administration, and the extension of the time limit for re-inspection shall be governed by the provisions of Article 23 of these Measures; or
3. If he considers that the case may have quality problems and is necessary to be submitted to the judicial committee for discussion, the case quality supervision and administration department shall, within 5 working days after having determined the discussion time, notify the self-checker and inspectors that they should finish the inspection report and description of relevant information within 5 working days prior to the discussion of the judicial committee and submit them to the judicial committee for discussion via the case quality supervision and administrative department.
Article 31 When the judicial committee discusses a quality supervision case, the self-checker shall make an explanation at the meeting. If the self-checker is unable to do so for any actual justifiable reason, the director of the pertinent trial division may designate the presiding judge of the collegiate bench or relevant staff member to make an explanation at the meeting.
III. Determination and Assumption of Liabilities
Article 32 A case with quality problems refers to a case in which the statutory procedures are violated, the facts are not clearly found, the application of law is wrong or the evidence is not sufficient and the correctness of the judgment result is therefore affected.
Article 33 The following circumstances are not case quality problems:
1. A case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial or ordered for trial as a result of the party's waiver or partial waiver of the claim for rights;
2. A civil or administrative case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial or ordered for trial as a result of the new evidence provided by the party;
3. A criminal case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial, ordered for trial or given a disapproval of the death penalty as a result of new evidence;
4. During the procedures for the review of death penalty in a criminal case, the case is amended or given a disapproval of death penalty because an agreement is reached between the victim (or his family members) and the defendant (or his family members) on civil compensation;
5. A case is amended or remanded for retrial as a result of the revisions to the law, regulation, judicial interpretation, or regulatory document of the administrative organ;
6. A case is amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial or ordered for trial because the administrative organ makes a new administrative act or revokes the original concrete administrative act; and
7. Other circumstances that the judicial committee considers as non-quality problems.
Article 34 As to a case with possible quality problems which is submitted for discussion, the judicial committee shall, according to law and on the basis of the facts, determine whether the case has quality problems, and the nature and extent of the problems by examining the inspection report, description of relevant information and relevant materials of the case and by hearing the explanation made by the self-checker, and make a corresponding decision or put forward opinions.
Article 35 As to a case which is determined as a case with quality problems by the judicial committee or during the inspection of which any clue of violation of law or discipline is found, if it is confirmed as true upon preliminary examination of the disciplinary and supervisory department, the judicial committee shall, in accordance with the Opinions of Guangdong Higher People's Court on Strengthening the Case Quality Supervision and Administration and the Accountability of Illegal Trial and other relevant provisions, discuss and decide whether the case constitutes illegal trial, and make a corresponding decision.
Article 36 If the self-checker or the person responsible for the case, relevant collegiate bench or relevant trial division opposes to the judicial committee's determination and decision that the case has quality problems, he or it may, within 15 working days after the judicial committee makes the relevant decision, fill out a Form of Application for Reconsideration on Case Quality Supervision and Administration and simultaneously prepare written reconsideration application materials and submit them to the case quality supervision and administration department, which shall provide them to the judicial committee for reconsideration (review).
Article 37 To reconsider the application of a reconsideration applicant, the judicial committee shall notify the reconsideration applicant that he should make a further statement about his application reasons at the meeting. The reconsideration decision made by the judicial committee shall be the final decision.
Article 38 If the self-checker or the person responsible for the case, the relevant collegiate bench or the relevant trial division fails to file a reconsideration application within 15 working days after the judicial committee makes the pertinent handling decision, he (it) shall be deemed to have waived the reconsideration.
Article 39 If a case is determined as a case with quality problems as a result of the self-checker's failure or waiver of making a statement at the judicial committee without a good reason, he has no right to apply to the judicial committee for reconsideration.
Article 40 The case quality supervision and administration department shall, within 5 working days after the reconsideration decision is made, fill out a Notice about the Handling Opinions for Case Quality Supervision and Administration according to the reconsideration opinions and decision of the judicial committee and send it to the original trial division, the trial supervision division and other relevant departments. If the trial of the case is in violation of any law or discipline, the case quality supervision and administration department shall, within 5 working days, submit the decision to the disciplinary and supervisory department for handling.
Article 41 As to a case which is determined to be a case with quality problems, the relevant liable persons shall, on the basis of the nature and seriousness of their liabilities, be evaluated or dealt with respectively under relevant provisions on the evaluation of officers.
Article 42 If the people's court at the lower level applies to the people's court for examination of a case which is amended by the people's court at the higher level and which is considered as one with no quality problem by the judicial committee of people's court at the lower level, the case quality supervision and administration department of the people's court at the higher level shall timely give a feedback of the case quality supervision handling result to the people's court at the lower level.
Article 43 After the conclusion of a quality supervision case, the inspectors of the trial supervision division shall collate and bind up the case files and put them into the archives. The archives of quality supervision cases shall be preserved for a period of 5 years.
IV Statistics and Notification of Results
Article 44 The judicial committee, political work, human resources and other departments of the people's court at each level shall establish special archives for the case quality supervision and administration by taking all judges as the statistical objects. Each trial division shall establish case quality supervision and administration reference archives for the judges of its own division.
Article 45 The case-filing division shall fill out a Statistical Form of Self-check Cases for Transfer, send it to the case quality supervision and administration department, judicial statistical department and the trial supervision division.
Article 46 The case quality supervision and administration department shall, according to the statistics of the case-filing division and each trial division, summarize the number of cases handled by the case-handling personnel of all trial divisions, the number of cases amended, remanded for retrial, ordered for retrial, ordered for trial and given a disapproval of death penalty, the number of cases amended by the people's court at the higher level and considered as cases with no quality problems by the judicial committees of the people's courts at the lower level and for which applications have been filed to the people's courts at the higher level for examination, the number of cases under complaint, the number of cases determined as cases with quality problems by the judicial committee, and other information, and prepare a case quality supervision schedule. It shall announce the statistical data to the whole court once every half year.
Article 47 The case quality supervision and administration department shall submit the case quality supervision schedule and the case quality supervision opinions and handling results to the judicial committee, and send them to the political work and human resource departments as references for the evaluation and inspection of officers by the political work and human resource departments.
Article 48 The judicial committee and the political work and human resource departments shall designate personnel to manage the relevant data and materials, which are submitted and transferred by the case quality supervision and administration department, and establish special reference archives.
Article 49 The people's court at each level may administer the supervision of the quality of cases on the basis of information technologies while taking into account its actual situation.
V. Supplementary Provisions
Article 50 The provisions on the supervision and administration of the quality of enforcement cases shall be formulated separately.
Article 51 The power to interpret these Measures shall remain with Guangdong Higher People's Court.
Article 52 These Measures shall be implemented as of the date of promulgation. The Interim Measures for the Supervision and Administration of the Quality of Cases in Courts of Guangdong Province, Several Provisions of Guangdong Higher People's Court on the Implementation of the Interim Measures for the Supervision and Administration of the Quality of Cases in Courts of Guangdong Province and the Operating Procedures of Guangdong Higher People's Court for Administering the Supervision of Quality of Cases on the Basis of Information Technologies (for Trial Implementation) shall simultaneously cease to apply.