Table of Contents
Chapter I: General Provisions
Chapter II: Jurisdiction
Chapter III: Case Filing, Investigation, and Initiation of Litigation
Section 1: Case Filing and Investigation
Section 2: Initiating Administrative Public Interest Litigation
Section 3: Initiation of Civil Public Interest Litigation
Chapter IV: Trial
Chapter V: Enforcement
Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I: General Provisions
Article 1: This Law is drafted on the basis of the Constitution so as to protect the national interest and the societal public interests, to regulate and safeguard the procuratorate’s public interest litigation activities, and to protect the lawful rights and interests of litigation participants.
Article 2: This Law applies to the people’s procuratorates’ handling of public interest litigation cases and the people’s courts’ trial of public interest litigation cases initiated by the people’s procuratorate; and where this law is silent, the provisions of relevant laws, such as the P.R.C. Civil Procedure Law and Administrative Litigation Law are to be applied.
Article 3: Where administrative organs with regulatory duties in the following areas violate the law in the exercise of authority or by not exercising authority, causing harm to the national interests or the societal public interest, the people’s procuratorates are to initiate administrative public interest litigation in accordance with this law and relevant law.
(1) Protection of the ecological environment and resources;
(2) Food and drug safety;
(3) Protection of state-owned assets and usage rights in state-owned land;
(4) Production Safety;
(5) Protection of the rights and interests of legally designated groups, such as minors, women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities;
(6) Protection of national defense interests and soldiers’ rights and interests;
(7) Countering telecommunications fraud;
(8) Protection of relics and cultural heritage;
(9) Promoting ethnic unity and progress.
In any of the following circumstances where the national interests or societal public interests are harmed, the people’s procuratorates are to initiate civil public interest litigation in accordance with this law and other relevant laws:
(1) Where natural persons, legal persons, or unincorporated organizations carry out acts that harm the national interests or societal public interests in the areas provided for in items 1, 2, or 4-9 of the preceding paragraph;
(2) Businesses carry out monopolistic acts;
(3) Employers’ acts harming the lawful rights and interests of a large number of laborers;
(4) Personal information handlers’ acts in handling personal information violate the lawful rights and interests of a large number of persons;
(5) Natural persons, legal persons, or unincorporated organizations’ acts infringing on heroes and martyrs names, likeness, reputation, or honor.
Article 4: Procuratorate public interest work shall persist in being objective, fair, lawful, transparent, shall put protection first, and coordinate governance to promptly and effectively protect the national interest and public societal interests;
Article 5: People’s procuratorates handling public interest litigation cases shall comply with legal procedures, shall insist on necessary prudence, and must not interfere with or replace administrative organ’s lawful performance of their duties, must not infringe the lawful rights and interests of natural persons, legal persons, or unincorporated organizations, and must not restrict or obstruct natural persons’, legal persons, or unincorporated orgnaizations’ exercise of their rights.
Article 6: All levels of people’s congress and their standing committees are to conduct oversight of the people’s procuratorates’ and people’s courts’ procuratorial public interest litigation at the corresponding level.
People’s procuratorates and people’s courts handling public interest litigation cases shall accept public oversight, safeguard the public’s rights to know, participate, and oversee in accordance with law.
Units and individuals are encouraged to participate in the protection of the national interest and societal public interests, overseeing the handling of public interest litigation cases in accordance with law.
Article 7: Where, during the handling of public interest litigation cases, people’s procuratorates and people’s courts discover that public employees have suspected violations or crimes abusing public office, they shall transfer it to the Supervision Organs for handling in accordance with law.
Chapter II: Jurisdiction
Article 8: Administrative public interest litigation cases are to be handled by the local people’s procuratorate for the site of the administrative organ.
Article 9: The basic-level people’s court for the area where the defendant administrative organ is located has jurisdiction over first instance trials of administrative public interest litigation cases initiated by the procuratorate. Where the law provides otherwise, follow those provisions.
Article 10: Civil public interest litigation cases are to be handled by the people’s procuratorate for the site of the violation or where the perpetrator resides.
Article 11: The basic-level people’s court for the area where the infringing conduct occurred or where the defendant resides has jurisdiction over the first instance trials of civil public interest litigation cases initiated by the people’s procuratorate. Where the law provides otherwise, follow those provisions.
Article 12: Where people’s procuratorates need to initiate litigation, they shall transfer the case to a people’s procuratorate at the same level as the people’s court with jurisdiction.
Chapter III: Case Filing, Investigation, and Initiation of Litigation
Section 1: Case Filing and Investigation
Article 13: Where, during the performance of their duties, people’s procuratorates discover that administrative organs with regulatory duties in the areas provided for in article 3, paragraph 1, of this law have unlawfully exercised their authority or failed to exercise their authority, and caused harm to national interests or the societal public interest, they shall file a case and investigate.
Article 14: Where, during the performance of their duties, people’s procuratorates discover that natural persons, legal persons, or unincorporated organizations have carried out the illegal conduct provided for in Article 3, paragraph 1 of this law, and caused harm to national interests or the societal public interest, they shall file a case and investigate.
Where the national interest or societal public interest harmed by the conduct in the preceding paragraph can be effectively protected by urging an administrative organ to perform its duties in accordance with law, the people’s procuratorate is not to file and investigate it as a civil public interest litigation case.
Article 15: Units and individuals may lawfully provide leads to the people’s procuratorates on infringements of the national interest or societal public interest provided for in Article 3 of this Law, and the people’s procuratorates shall promptly address them in accordance with law.
Article 16: People’s procuratorates handling public interest litigation cases have the power to investigate and collect evidence.
People’s procuratorates' investigation and collection of evidence shall be lawful, objective, and complete.
Article 17: People’s procuratorates handling public interest litigation cases may employ necessary measures in gathering evidence, such as questioning, inspecting sites, examinations, evaluations, or reading, reproducing, and collecting relevant documents and materials; but must not employ compulsory measures that restrict physical liberty or seal, seize, or freeze assets etc.
People’s procuratorates and their staff who become aware of state secrets, work secrets, commercial secrets, personal privacy or personal information during the course of investigation shall preserve their confidentiality.
Article 18: People’s procuratorates’ investigations and collection of evidence shall be conducted by procurators and assistant procurators or clerks, with at least two or more procuratorate staff, one or more of whom is a procurator.
When investigating and collecting evidence from relevant units and individuals, supporting documents from the procuratorate and work ID shall be presented.
Article 19: Relevant units and individuals shall cooperate with and assist people’s procuratorates’ investigations and collection of evidence, and must not refuse or obstruct.
Where the unit or individual under investigation obstructs the investigation through means such as violence, threats, or gathering crowds to besiege, constituting a violation of public security management provisions, public security administration penalties are to be given in accordance with law; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is to be pursued in accordance with law.
Where administrative organs and their staff refuse to fulfill their obligations to assist, the people’s procuratorate may report it to the supervision organ or the administrative organ at a level above that administrative organ.
Article 20: People’s procuratorates may employ means such as hearings to hear the opinions of all parties and learn about relevant circumstances. They shall organize a hearing where the case is major, difficult, or complex.
Where administrative organs, other organizations, or individuals request a hearing, the people’s procuratorates may organize a hearing.
Article 21: Where people’s procuratorates find through investigation that the situations provided for in articles 13 or 14 exist, they shall withdraw the case.
Section 2: Initiating Administrative Public Interest Litigation
Article 22: Where, after investigation, the people’s procuratorate finds that an administrative organ has circumstances of illegally exercising authority or not exercising its authority, causing infringement of the national interest or societal public interests, they shall submit a public interest litigation procuratorial recommendation to the administrative organ.
Public interest litigation procuratorial recommendations shall include content such as the reasons and basis for finding that the administrative organ unlawfully exercised authority or failed to exercise authority, facts on the infringement of the national interest or societal public interest, recommended corrections for the administrative organ, and the period for corrections.
Before people’s procuratorates decide to issue a public interest litigation procuratorial recommendation, they shall communicate with the administrative organ on the content listed in the preceding paragraph.
Article 23: The administrative organs shall make corrections within the corrections period provided in the public interest procuratorial recommendations, and respond to the people’s procuratorate in writing. In emergency situations, such as where harms to the national interest or societal public interests will continue to expand, the administrative organs shall promptly make corrections and respond to the people’s procuratorate in writing within 15 days.
Where administrative organs feel that they have not unlawfully exercised authority or failed to exercise authority, they shall respond in writing to the people’s procuratorate within 15 days of receiving the public interest procuratorate recommendation.
Article 24: In any of the following situations, the administrative organ shall apply to the people’s procuratorate for an extension of the period for corrections ten days before the period is complete, and explain the reasons:
(1) The administrative organ has already initiated correction procedures, but has not completed performance due to objective reasons;
(2) The public interest litigation case involves an application of law issue that requires interpretation or confirmation by an organ with authority;
(3) Other situations where the corrections period needs to be extended for reasons not due to the administrative organ itself.
After people’s procuratorates receive an application, they shall conduct a review within 7 days and issue a written opinion. Where it is decided to extend the corrections period, the extended corrections period shall be determined.
People’s procuratorates time in reviewing is not included in the administrative organ’s corrections period.
Article 25: People’s procuratorates shall conduct an investigation as to whether the circumstances provided for in Article 13 of this law still exist within 3 months of the date on which the corrections period is completed or within 30 days of receiving a written response submitted by the administrative organ in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 23 of this law. In major, difficult, or complex cases, there may be an extension of three months upon reporting to the people’s procuratorate at the level above in accordance with law.
Where the people’s procuratorate finds after review that the circumstances provided for in Article 13 of this law still exist in the administrative organ, they shall initiate administrative public interest litigation within 30 days of completing the review.
Article 26: In any of the following circumstances, people’s procuratorates shall make a decision to conclude the case:
(1) After review, the circumstances provided for in the first paragraph of Article 13 of this Law do not exist;
(2) The administrative organ has already adopted corrective measures, lawfully fulfilling its duties;
(3) Other circumstances, where the case shall be concluded.
After people’s procuratorates make a decision to conclude a case, they shall notify the relevant administrative organs in accordance with law.
Section 3: Initiation of Civil Public Interest Litigation
Article 27: Where the people’s procuratorate finds that natural persons, legal persons, or unincorporated organizations have carried out illegal conduct, harming the national interest or societal public interest, they shall initiate civil public interest litigation in accordance with law within 1 year of filing the case. In major, difficult, or complex cases, there may be an extension of three months upon reporting to the people’s procuratorate at the level above in accordance with law.
Where the law provides that other organs or relevant organizations may initiate civil public interest litigation regarding the unlawful conduct provided for in the preceding paragraph, the people’s procuratorate shall give notice in accordance with law before initiating civil public interest litigation. The period of the public announcement is to be 30 days. At the completion of the public announcement period, where other organs and organizations prescribed by law have not initiated litigation, or relevant organs have not initiated procedures for compensating environmental harms, the people’s procuratorate shall initiate civil public interest litigation in accordance with the preceding paragraph.
Article 28: People’s procuratorates handling civil public interest litigation cases of infringement of heroes and martyrs’ names, images, reputations, or honor shall directly solicit the opinions of the heroes and martyrs’ families. Where the heroes and martyrs' families initiate litigation, the people's procuratorates may support the litigation. Where heroes and martyrs do not have families, or their families do not initiate litigation, the people’s procuratorate may lawfully initiate litigation in the people’s courts.
Article 29: Where other organs or relevant organizations prescribed by law initiate civil public interest litigation the people's procuratorate may support the litigation.
Article 30: In any of the following circumstances, people’s procuratorates shall make a decision to conclude the case:
(1) Other legally-prescribed organs and the person with an obligation to pay compensation have reached an agreement on compensation, or have already initiated litigation for compensation of the ecological and environmental harm;
(2) Other legally-prescribed organs and relevant organizations have lawfully initiated civil public interest litigation in the people’s courts;
(3) The national interest or societal public interest that was harmed has already been protected;
(4) Other circumstances, where the case shall be concluded.
After people’s procuratorates make a decision to conclude a case, they shall notify the relevant administrative organs and stakeholders in accordance with law.
Chapter IV: Trial
Article 31: The people’s courts are to accept public interest litigation raised by the people’s procuratorate in accordance with law.
Article 32: Based on the differing situations of administrative organs' illegality, people’s procuratorates initiating administrative public interest litigation may submit litigation requests to the people’s courts for lawful performance of legally-prescribed duties, confirmation that administrative acts are illegal or invalid, or revoke or partially revoke an unlawful administrative act.
Where people's procuratorates initiate civil public interest lawsuits, they may submit litigation demands to the people’s courts such as requesting that the defendant stop violations, eliminate obstacles, remove harms, restore original conditions, make compensation for harms.
Article 33: People’s courts hearing public interest litigation cases shall form a collegial panel for trial in accordance with law.
Article 34: In civil public interest litigation cases initiated by the people's procuratorates where people's courts hold in-court proceedings, they shall serve notice to appear in court on the people's procuratorate three days before beginning court proceedings. The people's procuratorates shall submit a Notice of Personnel Appearing at Court to the people’s court within three days of having received a notice to appear in court.
Article 35: The documentary evidence, physical evidence, audiovisual materials, electronic data, witness testimony, party statements, evaluation opinions, site inspection records, and so forth lawfully collected by the people’s procuratorate in investigation may be lawfully used as evidence.
Article 36: In administrative public interest litigation cases, the people’s procuratorate bears the burden to present evidence showing that the administrative organ unlawfully exercised its authority or failed to exercise its authority, causing the national interest or societal public interest to be infringed. Administrative organs may provide evidence that they have not unlawfully exercised authority or failed to exercise authority.
In civil public interest litigation, the people’s procuratorate bears the burden to present evidence showing that the natural person, legal person, or unincorporated organization carried out unlawful conduct that harmed the national interest or societal public interest. Defendants may provide evidence showing they do not bear responsibility or bear reduced responsibility.
Article 37: In civil public interest litigation cases, where the defendant finds that the people’s procuratorate has not provided evidence materials beneficial to the defendant that it collected during the investigation period, it has the right to request that the people’s court collect them.
Article 38: People’s courts may conduct mediation in the trial of civil public interest litigation cases. Mediation should be based on the principles of lawfulness and voluntary participation, and must not harm national interests, the societal public interest, or the lawful rights and interests of others, and must not violate legal provisions.
Where an agreement is reached, the people’s courts shall announce the content of the agreement. The period of public notice is not to be less than 30 days. Where the public notice period is completed, and the people’s court reviews the content of the mediation agreement and finds that it does not infringe the national interest, societal public interest, and the lawful rights and interests of others, it shall issue a mediation document.
Article 39:During public interest litigation cases, where the defendant has already corrected the unlawful conduct or fulfilled their legally-prescribed duties, and the people’s procuratorate’s litigation demands have been fully realized, the people’s procuratorate may withdraw the litigation; but where it is truly necessary in administrative public interest litigation, the people’s procuratorate may request a determination that the previous administrative acts were unlawful.
Article 40: Where the defendant is dissatisfied with the people’s court's first instance judgment or ruling, they have the right to appeal to the people’s court at the level above in the legally-prescribed time period.
Article 41: Where the people’s procuratorate finds that the first-instance judgment of the people’s court is truly in error, it shall raise procuratorial appeal to the people’s court at the level above within 15 days of the judgment being served; where it finds that a people’s court’s ruling was in error, it shall submit an appeal to the people’s court at the level above within 10 days of the ruling being served.
Procuratorial appeals by local people's procuratorates of all levels against judgments or rulings of people's courts at the same level shall submit the appeals complaint through the original people's court, and also send a copy to the people's procuratorate at the level above.
Where the higher-level people's procuratorate finds that the procuratorial appeal is improper, it may withdraw the procuratorial appeal at the people's court of the same level, and notify the people's procuratorate that raised the procuratorial appeal.
Article 42: Second-instance people’s courts hearing appeals or counter-appeals in public interest litigation cases shall conduct a comprehensive review of the facts determined and law applied in the prior trial’s judgment or ruling, unrestricted by the scope of the appeal or procuratorial appeal.
Article 43: Second-instance people’s courts hearing appeals or counter-appeals in public interest litigation cases shall hold in-court proceedings.
Where people's courts hold in-court proceedings in accordance with law for second-instance public interest litigation cases brought by the people’s procuratorate, the people’s procuratorate for the same level shall appoint personnel to appear in court.
Article 44: Except where this law has special provisions, second-instance people’s courts hearing appeals or counter-appeals in public interest litigation cases are to apply the P.R.C. Civil Procedure Law and P.R.C. Administrative Litigation Law provisions on second-instance trials.
Chapter V: Enforcement
Article 45: Parties must fulfil judgments, rulings, and mediation documents that have taken legal effect. Where the parties refuse to fulfil them, the people’s procuratorate is to apply for enforcement to the people’s court, and the people’s court may also transfer for enforcement.
Article 46: Where administrative organs refuse to fulfil legally effective judgments, rulings, or mediation documents, the people’s courts may employ measures in accordance with the P.R.C. Administrative Litigation Law. People’s procuratorates may report to the administrative organs above that administrative organs.
Article 47:During the enforcement of a civil public interest litigation case, the people’s procuratorate and the subject of enforcement may negotiate as to how civil responsibility will be borne. Where an agreement is reached, the people’s courts shall announce the content of the agreement. The period of public notice is not to be less than 30 days.
Where the public notice period is completed, and the people’s court reviews the agreement and finds that it does not infringe the national interest and societal public interest, or the rights and interests of others, the subject of enforcement shall perform in accordance with the agreement. Where the subject of enforcement does not fulfill the agreement, the people’s court shall resume enforcement of original effective legal documents based on the people’s procuratorate’s request.
Article 48: Where the subject of enforcement in civil public interest litigation refuses to perform or delays performance on a legally-effective judgment, ruling, or mediation document, during the time for performance determined in an effective legal document, the people’s court may retain an institution with professional qualifications or another third-party to perform, and the subject of enforcement is to pay the related costs.
Article 49: Where the subject of enforcement refuses to satisfy civil liability, such as by eliminating impacts, restoring reputations, or formally apologizing, the people's courts may employ means of enforcement such as announcing or publishing effective legal documents in media such as newspapers and online, and the subject of enforcement is to bear the expenses incurred.
Article 50: Where the subject of enforcement or a stakeholder feels that the enforced conduct violates legal provisions, they may submit a written objection to the people’s court.
Where a person outside the case submits written objections about the enforcement targets during enforcement, the people’s courts shall review and address them. Where a person outside the case is not satisfied with the outcome and initiates litigation, the people’s courts shall notify the people’s procuratorate that initiated the civil interest litigation to participate.
Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions
Article 51: The people’s procuratorates may lawfully initiate public interest litigation against foreign organizations and individuals that carry out unlawful conduct that infringes on our nation’s lawful interests or societal public interest.
Article 52: This law takes effect on XX-XX-XX.
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