Zhou Qiang briefs top legislature on draft decision to establish Chengdu-Chongqing financial court

Zhou Qiang, president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), gave a briefing on the draft decision to establish a Chengdu-Chongqing financial court at the 33rd session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) on Feb 27.

Zhou said establishing a financial court in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle is a concrete measure in implementing the decision of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State Council. It is of great significance in securing the implementation of national financial strategies, preventing and defusing financial risks, improving China’s financial judicial system, maintaining financial security, enhancing the modernization of China’s financial trial system and capacity and propelling the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. To date, courts in Chongqing municipality and Sichuan province are well-founded for financial trials and have sufficient talent reserves, the conditions are ripe for the establishment of a financial court.

According to the draft, the court would have jurisdiction commensurate with an intermediate people's court in hearing finance-related civil, commercial and administrative lawsuits in Chongqing and parts of Sichuan that belong to the economic circle. Appeals filed against judgments or rulings of first instance made by the Chengdu-Chongqing financial court shall be tried by the Chongqing Higher People's Court. In terms of trial supervision, the court will report to the Standing Committee of Chongqing Municipal People's Congress upon its establishment. Its trial work will be done under the guidance and supervision of the SPC and the Chongqing Higher People’s Court and it will accept the legal supervision of the People’s Procuratorate according to law.

To give full play to its functional role, the SPC will guide the Chengdu-Chongqing financial court to strengthen the construction of information sharing mechanisms for financial risk prevention, improve the construction of financial judicial research and think tanks, and enhance its decision-making and advisory ability in propelling financial reform and maintaining financial security.