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Part Three Trial

Chapter I Trial Organizations

Article 147 Trials of cases of first instance in the Primary and Intermediate People's Courts shall be conducted by a collegial panel composed of three judges or of judges and people's assessors totalling three. However, cases in which summary procedure is applied in the Primary People's Courts may be tried by a single judge alone.

Trials of cases of first instance in the Higher People's Courts or the Supreme People's Court shall be conducted by a collegial panel composed of three to seven judges or of judges and people's assessors totalling three to seven.

When performing their functions in the People's Courts, the people's assessors shall enjoy equal rights with the judges.

Trials of appealed and protested cases in the People's Courts shall be conducted by a collegial panel composed of three to five judges.

The members of a collegial panel shall be odd in number.

The president of the People's Court or the chief judge of a division shall designate one judge to be the presiding judge of the collegial panel. If the president of the court or the chief judge of a division participates in a trial, he himself shall serve as the presiding judge.

Article 148 If opinions differ when a collegial panel conducts its deliberations, a decision shall be made in accordance with the opinions of the majority, but the opinions of the minority shall be entered in the records. The records of the deliberations shall be signed by the members of the collegial panel.

Article 149 After the hearings and deliberations, the collegial panel shall render a judgment. With respect to a difficult, complex or major case, on which the collegial panel considers it difficult to make a decision, the collegial panel shall refer the case to the president of the court for him to decide whether to submit the case to the judicial committee for discussion and decision. The collegial panel shall execute the decision of the judicial committee.