Foreigners to get better legal service

Zhou Qiang, president of the Supreme People's Court, asks courts to better handle disputes involving foreigners. Sun Ruofeng / for China Daily

China's top judge has asked the courts to improve the legal environment through better handling of disputes involving foreigners, particularly in the marine sector, as the country opens wider to the outside world and tries hard to attract overseas enterprises.

Zhou Qiang, president of the Supreme People's Court, said it is important for such cases to be heard in China, as the number has been growing over the past few years, an indication of China's growing integration into the world economy.

Among the cases involving foreigners, many are related to disputes on the sea, Zhou said.

Last year alone, 10 Chinese marine courts, including the Qingdao Maritime Court in Shandong province, concluded 1,030 cases involving foreign litigants — a 6.85 percent increase year-on-year, according to official statistics.

"Better handling of these marine cases involving foreigners will help build China's judicial image in the world and will attract more litigants from overseas to select our courts to settle marine disputes," Zhou said.

The large number of marine cases involving foreigners has motivated the courts to be more professional in the hearings so they can better protect national maritime security, he said.