Chapter VI Evidence

Article 63 Evidence shall be classified as follows:

(1) documentary evidence;

(2) material evidence;

(3) audio-visual material;

(4) testimony of witnesses;

(5) statements of the parties;

(6) expert conclusions; and

(7) records of inspection.

The above-mentioned evidence must be verified before it can be taken as a basis for ascertaining a fact.

Article 64 It is the duty of a party to an action to provide evidence in support of his allegations.

If, for objective reasons, a party and his agent ad litem are unable to collect the evidence by themselves or if the people's court considers the evidence necessary for the trial of the case, the people's court shall investigate and collect it.

The people's court shall, in accordance with the procedure prescribed by the law, examine and verify evidence comprehensively and objectively.

Article 65 The people's court shall have the right to make investigation and collect evidence from the relevant units or individuals; such units or individuals may not refuse to provide information and evidence.

The people's court shall verify the authenticity, examine and determine the validity of the certifying documents provided by the relevant units or individuals.

Article 66 Evidence shall be presented in court and cross-examined by the parties concerned. But evidence that involves State secrets, trade secrets and personal privacy shall be kept confidential. If it needs to be presented in court, such evidence shall not be presented in an open court session.

Article 67 The people's court shall take the acts, facts and documents legalized by notarization according to legal procedures as the basis for ascertaining facts, unless there is evidence to the contrary sufficient to invalidate the notarization.

Article 68 Any document submitted as evidence must be the original. Material evidence must also be original. If it is truly difficult to present the original document or thing, then reproductions, photographs, duplicates or extracts of the original may be submitted.

If a document in a foreign language is submitted as evidence, a Chinese translation must be appended.

Article 69 The people's court shall verify audio-visual material and determine after their examination in the light of other evidence in the case whether they can be taken as a basis for ascertaining the facts.

Article 70 All units and individuals who have knowledge of a case shall be under the obligation of giving testimony in court. Responsible heads of the relevant units shall support the witnesses to give testimony. When it is truly difficult for a witness to appear in court, he may, with the consent of the people's court, submit a written testimony.

Any person who is incapable of expressing his will properly shall not give testimony.

Article 71 The people's court shall examine the statements of the parties concerned in the light of other evidence in the case to determine whether the statements can be taken as a basis for ascertaining the facts.

The refusal of a party to make statements shall not prevent the people's court from ascertaining the facts of a case on the basis of other evidence.

Article 72 When the people's court deems it necessary to make an expert evaluation of a problem of a technical nature, it shall refer the problem to a department stipulated by the law for the evaluation. In the absence of such a department, the people's court shall appoint one to make the expert evaluation.

The evaluation department and the experts designated by the department shall have the right to consult the materials of the case necessary for the evaluation and question the parties and witnesses when circumstances so require.

The authorized department and the experts it designated shall present a written conclusion of the evaluation duly sealed or signed by both. If the evaluation is made by an expert alone, the unit to which the expert belongs shall certify his status by affixing its seal to the expert's conclusion.

Article 73 When inspecting material evidence or a site, the inspector must produce his papers issued by a people's court. He shall request the local grass-roots organization or the unit to which the party to the action belongs to send persons to participate in the inspection. The party concerned or an adult member of his family shall be present; their refusal to appear on the scene, however, shall not hinder the inspection.

Upon notification by the people's court, the relevant units and individuals shall be under the obligation of preserving the site and assisting the inspection.

The inspector shall make a written record of the circumstances and results of the inspection, which shall be duly signed or sealed by the inspector, the party concerned and the participants requested to be present.

Article 74 Under circumstances where there is a likelihood that evidence may be destroyed or lost, or difficult to obtain later, the participants in the proceedings may apply to the people's court for preservation of the evidence. The people's court may also on its own initiative take measures to preserve such evidence.