The Supreme People's Court (SPC) issued a notice regarding procedural matters related to civil cases involving immunity of foreign states on March 26.
To facilitate a better understanding and proper application of the notice, an official from the SPC's Fourth Civil Division presented more background information at a press briefing.
In January 2024, the Law on Foreign State Immunity came into effect. It is an important foreign-related legislative achievement and designed to adapt to new developments in China's international exchanges.
The law, which is crucial for advancing domestic and foreign-related rule of law, upholds the principles of state sovereign equality while protecting the lawful rights and interests of the parties involved, and promoting high-level opening-up.
Formulated based on in-depth research and extensive consultation, the notice is aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Law on Foreign State Immunity and guiding courts nationwide in lawfully handling civil cases involving the immunity of foreign states, according to the official.
The notice comprises eight articles that detail procedural aspects such as acceptance, jurisdiction, service of process, examination of jurisdictional immunity, and obtaining certificates from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for civil cases involving immunity of foreign states, the representative said.
The notice emphasizes the need for a centralized jurisdiction mechanism to enhance specialized handling of such cases and ensure the unified and accurate implementation of the Law on Foreign State Immunity.
Regarding the review process, the notice outlines that Chinese courts must examine whether a foreign state enjoys jurisdictional immunity, according to the official.
When a foreign state raises an objection to jurisdiction and claims to enjoy jurisdictional immunity, the court handling relevant cases shall review the validity of the reasons presented by the foreign state and conduct a proactive examination to determine the actual jurisdictional immunity status, the official said.
Furthermore, the notice underscores that a foreign state's participation in the jurisdictional objection review process and the presentation of opinions shall not be deemed an acceptance of the court's jurisdiction.