The people's courts are the judicial organs of the state. The
Supreme People's Court is established at state level; higher
people's courts are established in provinces, autonomous regions
and municipalities directly under the Central Government; and
intermediate and basic people's courts at lower levels. The Supreme
People's Court, the state's highest judicial organ, is responsible
to the NPC and its Standing Committee, and supervises the judicial
work of the local people's courts, military courts and other
special courts. The current president of the Supreme People's Court
is Xiao Yang.
The people's courts try all cases in public, except those involving
state secrets, individual privacy or juvenile delinquency. The
accused has the right to defense. Besides the right to defend
himself or herself, the accused may also be defended by a lawyer or
ask close relatives or guardians to do so.
