Use of tribunals a tricky decision: experts

The nation's top court, which said on Wednesday it will explore establishing tribunals to boost judicial credibility, should be careful as it moves forward with its reforms, legal experts said.  [Special coverage]

Experts voiced their concerns on Thursday in response to a statement by Zhou Qiang, president of the Supreme People's Court, who said the court will consider the use of tribunals as a way to create more judicial independence and hear more cases from the public.

Judicial reform was one of the key topics of discussion during the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party of China Central Committee, a crucial four-day meeting, which ended on Tuesday, that is used to establish national policies. Thus far, tribunals are only used for military purposes in China.

While legal experts said the establishment of tribunals is a positive step, they are worried that the tribunals will mostly be bogged down in settling administrative cases.

Since the end of 2012, many legal professionals and courts have had heated discussions about the establishment of administrative tribunals. Many say such tribunals will keep local governments from interfering in court cases.

Yang Weidong, a law professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, said the creation of tribunals will increase the number of administrative cases that affect local governments.

From January to September last year, Chinese courts filed 91,456 administrative cases, a 1.63 percent drop from the previous year, according to statistics from the Supreme People's Court.

"It is hard for residents to sue government departments in China, which is why we believe the tribunals should be established only to guarantee judicial independence and make trials more professional," he said.

He said maritime tribunals, mostly in coastal cities such as Qingdao, Shandong province, are independent of local governments, have their own trial procedures, and are under the management of upper-level courts. He admitted that establishing tribunals will not be easy and suggested using pilot programs in a few cities.

"It costs a lot more time and money to improve a judicial team," he added. 'There is also the question of which cases should be brought to a tribunal or a common court."

Yang Xiaojun, another law professor at the academy, said the key to fulfilling judicial independence is to separate courts from the government.

"The core of the issue lies in how to wipe out government elements in courts, not whether to set up tribunals," said Yang, who added that he doubts the top court will explore the use of tribunals.