Participation of notary in auxiliary judicial work to be generalized nationwide

The pilot program of notary services' participation in auxiliary judicial work will be generalized across the country according to a recent notice jointly issued by the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme People's Court.

The program is now piloted in 12 provincial regions, including Beijing, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and Heilongjiang province, among others.

The notice demands that other provincial regions must carry out the program in all or part of their domains. Regions with ample notary resources and a strong demand for auxiliary judicial work will be the key targets of the program.

According to the notice, by the end of 2020, the program will be implemented in every Chinese prefectural-level city. By that time, every court suffering a judge shortage will have a special office responsible for the program.

The notice also emphasizes that existing notarization procedures should not be violated during the implementation of the program, which will focus on such auxiliary judicial work as service of judicial documents, mediation, property preservation, collection of evidence and enforcement of court rulings.