Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Concerning the Hearing of Cases Involving Housing Registration

Fa Shi [2010] No. 14

November 5, 2010

Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Concerning the Hearing of Cases Involving Housing Registration adopted at the 1491st meeting of the Trial Committee of the Supreme People's Court on August 2, 2010 are hereby promulgated and shall come into effect as of November 18, 2010.

Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Concerning the Hearing of Cases Involving Housing Registration

(Adopted at the 1491st meeting of the Trial Committee of the Supreme People's Court on August 2, 2010)

These Provisions are formulated in accordance with the Real Rights Law of the People's Republic of China, The Law of the People's Republic of China on the Administration of Urban Real Estate,The Law of the People's Republic of China on Administrative Proceedings and other applicable laws and regulations for the purpose of ensuring that cases involving housing registration shall be properly tried.

Article 1 A people's court shall accept the administrative lawsuits brought before it by any citizen, legal person or other organization against a housing registration authority in connection with its act of housing registration, or administrative acts or omissions in connection with inquiry or reproduction of registration materials.

Article 2 A people's court shall dismiss the administrative lawsuits brought before it by a citizen, legal person or other organization against a housing registration authority in connection with its acts of housing registration conducted in accordance with legal documents issued by a people's court or an arbitration commission, notice on assistance in enforcement issued by competent authorities, or expropriation decision issued by a people's government, unless such citizen, legal person or organization holds that there is discrepancy between the registration and relevant documents.
The people's court shall dismiss administrative lawsuits brought before them by a citizen, legal person or other organization against a housing registration authority for its exchange, reissuance of ownership certificate or registration certificate, or renewal of registration book which does not alter any content of the original registration.
The people's court shall dismiss the administrative lawsuits brought before them by a citizen, legal person or other organization against a housing registration authority in connection with its acts of housing registration conducted before the promulgation of the Administrative Procedure Law.

Article 3 Administrative lawsuits brought by a citizen, legal person or other organization concerning acts of housing registration may not be affected by the following:
1. The housing in question has been destroyed or disappeared;
2. The act of housing registration has been altered by the housing registration agency; and
3. Effective legal documents adopt the ownership certificate, registration book or certificate of housing registration as evidence in the case.

Article 4 The people's court shall accept the lawsuits brought by a creditor against the registration of housing transfer conducted by a housing registration authority for the debtor if such lawsuits fall under any of the following circumstances:
1. The advance notice registration of creditor's rights with housing in question as subject matter has been handled;
2. The creditor is the mortgagee and the housing transfer is registered without the consent of the creditor;
3. The people's court has conducted mandatory enforcement measures for the housing at the request of the creditor, and has informed the housing registration authority of this; or
4. There is collusion between personnel of the housing registration authority and the debtor.

Article 5 The people's court shall accept the administrative lawsuits brought by the original right-owner or interested party to a housing against the first transfer registration of the housing which has been transferred for more than one time.
The people's court shall accept the collective administrative lawsuits brought by the original right-owner or interested party to a housing against the first transfer registration and subsequent transfer registrations; where the court rejects the claims of the plaintiff on the prior transfer registration or rules that the prior housing registration is illegal for the purpose of protecting a third party acting in good faith, it shall also reject the plaintiff's lawsuits against the subsequent transfer registrations.
The people's court may not accept the administrative lawsuits brought by the original right-owner or interested party of the house, which does not bring a lawsuit against the first transfer registration of the house, but against any subsequent transfer registration.

Article 6 After accepting an administrative case involving housing registration, the people's court shall give the notice requiring the following interested parties to participate in the lawsuit as third parties:
1. right-owner specified in the housing registration book;
2. right-owners in the disputed or correction registration, or advance notice registration; and
3. other interested parties identified by the people's court.

Article 7 Administrative cases involving housing registration are under the jurisdiction of the people's court in the place where the housing is located, but cases falling under any of the following circumstances shall be under the jurisdiction of the people's court in the place where the defendant is based:
1. where the plaintiff requests the housing registration authority to fulfill its duties, such as registration for housing transfer, enquiry and reproduction of registration materials;
2. where the lawsuit is brought against the housing registration authority's confiscation of housing ownership certificate;
3. where the lawsuit is brought against the administrative reconsideration for altering the housing registration.

Article 8 Where the plaintiff brings administrative lawsuits against housing registration on the ground that the civil legal relationship as the basis of housing registration, such as purchase, sharing, donation, mortgage, marriage and succession, is invalid or shall be canceled, the people's court shall notify the plaintiff to resolve the civil dispute first. The period of handling civil dispute is exclusive of the time limit for bringing an administrative lawsuit; any such administrative lawsuit that has been accepted shall be terminated.

Article 9 The defendant shall bear the burden of proof in connection with the validity of the housing registration in dispute. Where the original of the evidence is kept by the defendant, the defendant shall present the same in court. Where the original is not kept by the defendant, the defendant shall submit photocopy or reproduction thereof, verified to be consistent with the original, and give necessary explanations. In challenging the evidence provided by the defendant, the party concerned shall present corresponding evidence.

Article 10 Where the housing registration in dispute is determined as legal, the people's court shall reject the claims of the plaintiff.

Article 11 Where the housing registration in dispute involves several subjects of right or the housing is dividable, amongst which the registration of some of the subjects or some parts of the housing is illegal and should be canceled, the court may rule to grant partial cancelation.
Where the housing registration in dispute is illegal but has been altered by the housing registration authority, the court shall rule that the act in litigation is illegal.
Where the housing registration in litigation is illegal but cancelation thereof would substantially damage the public interest or the housing has been obtained by a third party acting in good faith, the court shall rule the act in dispute is illegal but may not cancel the housing registration.

Article 12 Where the applicant goes through housing registration procedures by providing fake materials, and the housing registration authority fails to perform its due diligence, the indemnification liability shall be borne by the applicant and the authority in proportion to their respective fault and role in causing the damage.

Article 13 Where personnel of the housing registration authority collude with a third party to conduct illegal housing registration, which undermines the rights and interests of the plaintiff, the housing registration authority and a third party shall bear the joint liability for indemnification.

Article 14 Where any previous judicial interpretation made by the Supreme People's Court conflicts with these Provisions, these Provisions shall prevail.
Administrative cases involving registration of housing built on the collectively-owned rural land shall be tried by referring to these Provisions.