At 10am on 3 July 2017, the litigants of a ship collision case came to our Filing Division and presented the filing judge with a pennant and a letter of thanks in appreciation for our judges’ dedicated services for the people.

On 4 August 2016, a fishing boat registered in Lingao in our province sank after being hit by a cargo ship when she was operating in the waters of Beibu Gulf. The accident caused the death of 3 members of the crew. The ship suspected of the offence was detained in Xiuying Port, Haikou by the maritime safety administration for investigation. The bereaved families rushed to Haikou Maritime Court at 4am on 7 August to apply for pre-trial preservation of property by arresting the ship. The maritime court immediately activated the “round the clock” mechanism to entertain preservation applications. Lin Jiang, the presiding judge, Mo Xiong, member of the collegial bench, Judge Jiang Ling and all auxiliary personnel had hurried to the filing hall by 6am to study and handle the case. The maritime judges made active efforts to mediate an agreement between the parties concerned. The owner of the suspected ship agreed to issue a letter of guarantee of CNY 4.4 million, and the applicants agreed to withdraw the application. This not only protected the lawful rights and interests of the applicants, but also ensured the on-time delivery of the cargo carried on the ship. It was a solution that benefited both parties concerned. Under the guidance of the maritime judges and through negotiation between multiple parties over 10 months, a settlement agreement was finally concluded between the parties concerned, and the bereaved families received a compensation of around CNY 2.5 million.