On July 31, the Supreme People's Procuratorate issued the newly revised regulations on procuratorial hearings during case review by people's procuratorates.
The revised regulations consist of 30 articles in six chapters, covering general provisions, the applicable circumstances and methods of hearings, the selection and management of hearing officers, hearing procedures, hearing safeguards, and supplementary provisions.
The revised regulations further clarify the applicable circumstances and methods for procuratorial hearings by specifying the specific circumstances in which hearings may or shall be conducted.
The regulations also improve the mechanism for the selection and management of hearing officers by refining the qualifications and procedures for their appointment, while further standardizing the random selection, terms of office, and number of hearing officers.
The document further specifies the methods of conducting hearings, stipulating that hearings shall generally be held in the procuratorial hearing rooms of people's procuratorates. Under special circumstances, where parties are genuinely unable to attend hearings in person due to natural disasters, old age, illness, or transportation difficulties, an online hearing may be organized upon the parties' application and with the approval of the chief prosecutor.
The revised regulations add provisions on simplified hearings. Simplified hearings may be adopted for petitions and appeals filed against original judgments, rulings or other case-handling decisions where the facts in the original case are clear, the law has been correctly applied and the disposition is appropriate, prosecutors have conducted in-person legal interpretation and reasoning with the parties, and the parties have no objection to the use of simplified hearings.
The revised regulations further clarify the nature and functions of procuratorial hearings, specify the time requirements for notifying parties prior to the hearing, improve coordination with the work of people’s supervisors, and refine divisions of responsibility in hearing work. They also enhance the requirements for the performance of hearing officers and establish mechanisms to ensure procedural safeguards during hearings.
