President of China’s top court visits UK

Zhou Qiang, president of the Supreme People's Court of China, wrapped up his five day visit to the UK, which had promoted the pragmatic cooperation between the courts of the two countries, on June 13.

President of the Supreme People's Court, Zhou Qiang (L), shakes hands with Lord Neuberger (R), president of the UK Supreme Court, during his visit to the UK from June 9 to 13. [Photo by Guo Qingbin/People's Court Daily]

The visit celebrated the implementation of the China-UK joint declaration on building a "global comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century" issued in October 2015, said Zhou.

Zhou made the remark when meeting with the British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.

In welcoming Zhou, UK Supreme Court President Lord Neuberger said that when he visited Beijing on May 25 he was strongly impressed by Chinese courts’ IT applications and open and transparent judicial practices.

As information construction in the legal system proceeds, especially through better processing of procedural documents and judicial announcements, a more dynamic, transparent and efficient judicial system emerges in China, Zhou said.

Courts of various levels in China are turning themselves into “Smart Courts” to better serve both the people and judiciary, he added.

Zhou said that the supreme courts of the two countries have a close relationship and that the visit will deepen their cooperation and “open a new judicial chapter” between them.

Notes were signed and exchanged by the two sides during the visit.