Copyright 2015 by Stanford University

Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court

Concerning Work on Case Guidance

(Discussed and Passed by the Adjudication Committee of the Supreme People’s Court

on November 15, 2010 and Issued on November 26, 2010)

CHINA GUIDING CASES PROJECT

English Guiding Cases Rules

June 12, 2015 Edition*

* The citation of this document is: 《最高人民法院关于案例指导工作的规定》 (Provisions of the

Supreme People’s Court Concerning Work on Case Guidance), passed by the Adjudication Committee of the

Supreme People’s Court on Nov. 15, 2010, issued on and effective as of Nov. 26, 2010, CHINA GUIDING CASES

PROJECT, English Guiding Cases Rules, June 12, 2015 Edition, available at http://cgc.law.stanford.edu/guiding-

cases-rules/20101126-english/.

This document was translated into English by Yingdi Qi, Jordan Corrente Beck, and Dr. Mei Gechlik. A

few words included in square brackets and some translators’ notes were added to make the piece more

comprehensible to readers. The following text, otherwise, is a direct translation of the original text. We thank

Garret Anderson, Brain Timm-Brock, and Ralph Wang for preparing earlier versions.

2015.06.12 Edition

Copyright 2015 by Stanford University

2

In order to summarize adjudication experiences, unify the application of law, enhance

adjudication quality, and safeguard judicial impartiality, [the Supreme People’s Court], pursuant

to legal provisions including the Organic Law of the People’s Courts of the People’s Republic of

China, [hereby] formulates this [set of] Provisions to carry out work on case guidance.

Article 1

Guiding Cases, which have guiding effect on adjudication and enforcement work in

courts throughout the country, shall be determined and uniformly released by the Supreme

People’s Court.

Article 2

The Guiding Cases referred to in this [set of] Provisions [must be] rulings and judgments

that have already come into legal effect and meet the following requirements:

(1) are of widespread concern to society;

(2) [involve] legal provisions [that] are of relatively general nature;

(3) are of a typical nature;1

(4) are difficult, complicated, or of new types; [or]

(5) other cases which have guiding effect.

Article 3

The Supreme People’s Court shall establish the Office for the Work on Case Guidance,

which shall be in charge of such work as the selection, review, and submission for approval of

Guiding Cases.

Article 4

Each adjudication unit of the Supreme People’s Court may recommend to the Office for

the Work on Case Guidance a ruling or judgment of the [Supreme People’s] Court or of a local

1 Translators’ note: while requirement (5) is a catch-all item, it is unclear from the original text whether

“and” or “or” is implied here, i.e., it is not clear whether requirements (1)-(4) must all be met.

2015.06.12 Edition

Copyright 2015 by Stanford University

3

people’s court at any level that has already come into legal effect and is deemed [by the said unit]

to meet the [requirements] set out in Article 2 of this [set of] Provisions.

Each Higher People’s Court and the Military Court of the People’s Liberation Army may,

following discussion and determination by the adjudication committee of the said court,

recommend to the Office for the Work on Case Guidance of the Supreme People’s Court a ruling

or judgment of the said court or of a people’s court in its jurisdiction that has already come into

legal effect and is deemed [by the said court] to meet the [requirements] set out in Article 2 of

this [set of] Provisions.

[Each] Intermediate People’s Court and Basic People’s Court may, following discussion

and determination by the adjudication committee of the said court, report to the Higher People’s

court level by level and suggest that [the Higher People’s Court] recommend to the Office for the

Work on Case Guidance of the Supreme People’s Court a ruling or judgment of the said court

that has already come into legal effect and is deemed [by it] to meet the [requirements] set out in

Article 2 of this [set of] Provisions.

Article 5

Representatives of people’s congresses, members of committees of the political

consultative conference, experts, scholars, lawyers, and other people from all circles of society

who care about the adjudication and enforcement work of people’s courts may recommend a

ruling or judgment of a people’s court that has already come into legal effect and is deemed [by

the said individual] to meet the [requirements] set out in Article 2 of this [set of] Provisions to

the original people’s court which rendered such ruling or judgment.

Article 6

The Office for the Work on Case Guidance should promptly put forward [its] review

opinions on the recommended cases. Where [a case] meets the [requirements] set out in Article

2 of this [set of] Provisions, [the Office] should report to the President or the Vice President-in-

charge and request that [he or she] submit [the case] to the Adjudication Committee of the

Supreme People’s Court for discussion and determination.

The Guiding Cases discussed and determined by the Adjudication Committee of the

Supreme People’s Court shall be uniformly released in the form of announcements in the Gazette

of the Supreme People’s Court, on the website of the Supreme People’s Court, and in the

People’s Court Daily.

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Article 7

People’s courts at all levels should refer to the Guiding Cases released by the Supreme

People’s Court when adjudicating similar cases.

Article 8

The Office for the Work on Case Guidance of the Supreme People’s Court shall carry out

the compilation of Guiding Cases annually.

Article 9

Those cases that have significance in guiding the adjudication and enforcement work of

courts nationwide and that have been released by the Supreme People’s Court prior to the

implementation of this [set of] Provisions shall be sorted and compiled in accordance with this

[set of] Provisions and then issued as Guiding Cases.

Article 10

This [set of] Provisions shall be implemented from the date of issuance.