Foreigners involved in commercial disputes in the Lingang Special Area, newly added to the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, will be allowed to use English in litigation materials and court hearings if both parties agree, the Shanghai High People's Court said.
A simultaneous interpretation system will be used during court hearings to aid the process, Pan Yunbo, director of the court's commercial tribunal, said on Dec 30.
Nearly 2,500 lawsuits related to the Lingang Special Area were received by Shanghai courts from September to Dec 25. In disputes involving at least one foreign party, the number of intellectual property cases rose 133 percent year-on-year, the number of financial disputes was up nearly 17 percent and the number of commercial disputes rose 12 percent.
"It showed that after the establishment of the special area, commercial transactions increased rapidly and so did the need for judicial settlement of commercial disputes," said Chen Meng, vice-president of the Shanghai High People's Court.
The adoption of English as an official language in such cases was aimed at offering better and more efficient legal services, Chen said.
Source: China Daily
