People’s courts in free trade zones should take local situations into consideration and meet their requirements with improved capabilities in trials and enforcement, said Li Shaoping, vice president of the Supreme People’s Court.

Li made the comment during a ceremony marking the establishment of the Nansha Area’s people’s court in the Guangdong Free Trade Zone, held on Dec 30. He extended congratulations on behalf of the SPC and said the Nansha court should ensure that the commercial environment is international, market-oriented, and subject to the rule of law. He said that in response to the zone’s new policies and measures, the court needs to update its working mechanisms to handle business, financial and IP cases properly.

It should also come up with multiple methods to resolve commercial disputes in the zone and appoint and foster judges carefully, said Li.

He added that free trade zones are a significant platform to display China’s economy, society and rule of law developments to the world, so the courts should present a bright image of justice by making transparent and independent judgments and offering convenient judicial services to protect lawful business interests.

Ren Xuefeng, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee, said the court will seek innovations in management, hear cases concerning Hong Kong and Macao, and build appropriate judicial mechanisms.

Other participants in the ceremony included Zheng E, president of Guangdong province’s Higher People’s Court, Ding Hongdu and Chen Guo, members of the Standing Committee of the CPC Guangzhou City Committee, and Zhou Yawei, deputy mayor of Guangzhou.