(Adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People’s Congress on August 29, 2002)

Having discussed the implication of "Whoever has the ability to execute the judgment or order made by a people’s court but refuses to do so, if the circumstances are serious" as prescribed in Article 313 of the Criminal Law, the Standing Committee of National People’s Congress gives the interpretation as follows:

"The judgment or order made by a people’s court " prescribed in Article 313 of the Criminal Law refers to the judgment or order which is made by a people’s court in accordance with law and which has the contents of execution and is illegally effective. The orders made by the people’s courts for execution, in accordance with law, of the orders for payment, effective mediation documents, arbitral awards, notarized documents of obligation, etc. are included in the orders as prescribed in Article 313.

The following cases come under the category of "Whoever has the ability to execute the judgment or order made by a people’s court but refuses to do so, if the circumstances are serious" as prescribed in Article 313 of the Criminal Law:

(1) the person subjected to execution conceals, transfers, intentionally damages or destroys property, or gratuitously conveys property, or conveys property at a lower price which is obviously unreasonable, thereby making it impossible to execute the judgment or order;

(2) the guarantor or the person subjected to execution conceals, transfers, intentionally damages or destroys property, or conveys the property which has been provided as a guaranty to a people’s court, thereby making it impossible to execute the judgment or order;

(3) the person who has the obligation to assist in execution refuses to do so upon receiving from a people’s court the notice for assistance in execution, thereby making it impossible to execute the judgment or order;

(4) the person subjected to execution, the guarantor, or the person who has the obligation to assist in execution conspires with the functionary of a State organ and obstructs execution by making use of the power of the said functionary, thereby making it impossible to execute the judgment or order; or

(5) any other person who has the ability to execute refuses to do so, if the circumstances are serious.

Any functionary of a State organ who commits the act prescribed in subparagraph ( 4 ) mentioned above, shall be deemed an accomplice in the crime of refusing to execute a judgment or order and be investigated for criminal responsibility. Any functionary of a State organ who accepts bribes or abuses his power and commits the act prescribed in subparagraph ( 4 ) mentioned above, which at the same time constitutes a crime as provided for in Article 385 or 397 of the Criminal Law, shall be convicted and punished in accordance with the provisions for a heavier punishment.

This Interpretation is hereby announced.

The English translation is for reference only and if there is any discrepancy, the Chinese version shall prevail.