Marine courts gain worldwide respect

China's top court published a white paper on Tuesday about marine disputes over the past 30 years, and presented 10 typical cases to the public to illustrate how it operates.

The first batch of courts specializing in hearing marine cases was established in 1984. There are now 10 such courts, mainly located in eastern areas, including Shanghai; Qingdao, in Shandong province; and Xia'men, in Fujian province, according to the white paper.

Since they began hearing disputes, the tribunals have resolved 215,826 marine cases with litigants from more than 70 countries and regions.

Of the 10 typical cases listed, six related to overseas litigants or shipping companies.

"Our ability to hear marine cases helps our judicial image, and our decisions will affect ocean economic development around the world," said Wang Yanjun, deputy chief judge of the marine tribunal under the top court.

Currently, China has 570 judges who handle marine disputes, and most of them have received specialized education in marine knowledge and law, Wang said.

Many foreign shipping companies prefer to take their disputes to Chinese marine tribunals, "which means the quality of our trials has been approved and is respected throughout the world", he said.

This is the first time the top court has published a white book of marine cases. The document is also presented in English.