Ministry of Justice to strengthen qualification review for notary candidates

The Bureau of Public Legal Service Administration of the Ministry of Justice has rolled out a set of measures for the qualification examination of notary candidates in an effort to streamline the process and beef up the country's notary force.

The bureau demands efficient handling of the applications for notary posts, requiring provincial-level judicial administrative authorities to routinely handle them based on local needs. It also puts an end to the current nationwide practice of handling groups of applications every September.

It requests law-based and strict qualification examinations skewed toward high-quality talents with a work experience of at least 10 years in such legal professions such judge, procurator or lawyer.

It calls for streamlining the process, allowing notary candidates to submit their application materials before attending job training sessions. At the end of the sessions, the China Notary Association, rather than candidates, will directly submit candidates' training certificates to the examination organ.

The bureau also requires stringent review of application materials, which includes the exact month a candidate started or ended a work or education experience. A further requirement would be a good-conduct certificate to be issued by the department of political work or the Party organization of a candidate's former employer in order to prevent any falsification of work experience or other types of misrepresentation.