In order to listen to the people’s opinions, accept supervision and improve work practices, Haikou Marmite Court invited NPC representatives, members of the national committee of CPPCC, specially engaged supervisors, people’s assessors and representatives of the people to a meeting on 8 January 2019. Reports were made on the court’s work achievements in 2018 and plans for 2019. The court also asked for suggestions and advice about the maritime court’s work.

At the meeting, Xu Yahui, president of the court, warmly welcomed all participants and outlined the main work achieved by Haikou Maritime Court in 2018:

I. Contributing to the country’s general development based on the court’s maritime trial characteristics.

The court proposed the guiding ideas of “basing on maritime characteristics, broadening international visions, shouldering responsibilities, and serving the country’s strategies”. It implemented twelve plans and policies, including the Opinions of Haikou Maritime Court about Supporting the Building of Hainan Pilot Free Trade Zone and Free Trade Port with Chinese Characteristics, and Work Mechanisms for Offshore Circuit Courts and Island Tribunals. It actively promoted the building of offshore circuit courts and island tribunals in support of the Belt and Road Initiative and the building of Hainan free trade zone (port).

II. Duly exercising maritime trial functions in support of social economic growth.

By duly trying and concluding cases involving the South China Sea and concerning disputes such as those in relation to contracts for marine insurance, service contracts for yachts and other vessels, the court declared China’s marine sovereignty and supported the creation of a legal, international and convenient business environment. The court set up timeline management registers, optimized the linking of case entertainment, trial and enforcement as well as a cooperative case handling system, and built a professional enforcement team. These efforts showed the court’s determination to win the battle of “basic resolution of difficulties in enforcement”.

III. Innovating mechanisms and strengthening team building.

A reform and innovation research team, which mainly consisted of young officers, was set up to give full play to the young officers’ enthusiasm in innovation. The court also innovated foreign-related trials, applying summary procedures to foreign-related cases with simple facts and clear legal relationships. It accepted general identification and authorization of foreign litigation subjects. It set up a system to ascertain foreign laws. Cooperation was established with authorities and higher education institutions such as Hainan Maritime Safety Administration and East China University of Political Science and Law to take advantage of complementary strengths and to achieve mutual benefit.

IV. Actively promoting judicial transparency and widely accepting supervision from the community.

The court took the initiative to report to the Standing Committee of Haikou Municipal People's Congress on its major work plans and performance, and attentively listened to the committee’s feedback. It held work symposiums and visited NPC representatives to listen to the representatives’ opinions. It fully and vividly promoted the rule of law, and was awarded the honorary title of “Leading Organization in Promoting Judicial Awareness among Courts across the Country”. Throughout the year, the maritime court entertained 1153 cases and concluded 1110 of them, achieving a conclusion rate of 96.27%.

After listening to the work reports, the participants gave speeches based on their respective functions and roles. It was generally agreed that the meeting showed them an insight into the highlight achievements and substantial results made by Haikou Maritime Court over the last year, such as the set-up of offshore circuit courts and islands tribunals, the building of a team of talents with maritime legal English proficiency, and the innovation in foreign-related trials. They expressed the wish that in the year to come, Haikou Maritime Court would continue to make efforts in team building, themed researches, judicial awareness promotion, platform optimization, and strengthening supervision. For instance, efforts might be made in the following areas: training an international trial team by improving foreign language skills and trial competency; conducting themed surveys and researches at home and abroad in order to cooperate and work more closely with the CPPCC, marine administrative authorities, and high education institutions focusing on marine development, and to solve problems confronting administrative law enforcement and improve theoretical and academic competencies as well as the quality and efficiency of trials; taking advantage of the internet and other media means to further promote to the public maritime legal knowledge and trial cases; achieving efficiency in cooperative law enforcement by building a data sharing platform, setting up ocean and maritime law study associations with higher education institutions, and establishing a mechanism to manage offshore circuit courts together with marine authorities; enhancing judicial credibility by promoting the attendance of supervisors in court hearings and the participation of people’s assessors in case enforcement, and facilitating their communication with people’s assessors in other courts; resolving disputes in a timely manner by exploring and implementing various means of dispute resolution; unifying the judging criteria by releasing cases and judicial opinions as guidance and reference.