Law of China

Module 2

Government, courts and administrative law: the National People’s Congress, the State Council, local government, the People’s Courts, the procuratorates and remedies against officials

China’s institutions are organised around a **single principle**: all power belongs to the people, who exercise it through **people’s congresses**, and every other state organ is created by a congress and is **responsible to it**. Below the congresses stand the **governments** that carry out the laws, the **courts** that try cases, the **procuratorates** that prosecute and supervise, and, since 2018, the **supervisory commissions** that oversee public officials. The Party’s organs lead and coordinate them all. For a foreigner, the most important of these are the **ministries and local offices** that grant permits, the **courts** that decide disputes and the **administrative remedies** against an official decision. This module explains each of them.

General education on the law of Mainland China, using invented people and businesses. It states laws and procedures in simplified form and is not legal advice. The law and its practice change, and every case turns on its facts and on the local authority. It does not offer legal representation or a legal opinion on any case. Consult a Chinese-qualified lawyer for any real matter.