On October 21, during a press conference in Nanning, Liang Yuekui, the Deputy Chief Judge of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region High Court, highlighted the court’s commitment to efficiently adjudicating international commercial maritime cases since 2021. He emphasized that these efforts have positioned Guangxi as a preferred destination for resolving international commercial disputes, particularly in relation to ASEAN, thereby supporting China-ASEAN efforts to align with the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade rules.

From 2021 to 2023, Liang reported that the Guangxi courts processed a total of 23,025 cases involving foreign parties and those from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, spanning 75 countries and regions. To enhance judicial efficiency and accessibility for both domestic and international parties, the Guangxi High Court established the China-ASEAN Free Trade Zone Nanning International Commercial Court at the Nanning Railway Transportation Intermediate Court, a specialized tribunal for ASEAN-related cases at the Beihai Maritime Court, and a special circuit court for Sino-Vietnamese commercial disputes at the Guangxi Border Court.

Moreover, the Guangxi High Court has initiated measures such as the establishment of a case study base focused on ASEAN to standardize adjudication criteria and improve trial efficiency. They are also advancing the development of smart court technologies, exploring the implementation of cross-border litigation applications, electronic notifications, online mediation, and virtual court proceedings.

In terms of international judicial cooperation, the Guangxi High Court has signed memorandums of understanding with the courts of Vietnam’s Lang Son and Quang Ninh provinces. These agreements focus on case sharing, border trade dispute resolution, and judicial assistance, all aimed at fostering deeper judicial collaboration between China and Vietnam. The court also hosted the third China-ASEAN Chief Justices Forum, facilitating online processing of judicial assistance requests, including document delivery and evidence gathering.

Additionally, the Guangxi High Court is working on the development of a judicial exchange and information center website for China-ASEAN countries to provide bilingual (Chinese and English) electronic notifications for ASEAN-related cases.

The white paper titled “Guangxi Courts’ International Commercial Maritime Trials (2021-2023)” was officially released on that day.