正文
China is strengthening legal support for the development of free trade pilot zones as part of efforts to bolster high-level opening-up and optimize a sound business environment governed by the rule of law, the country's top court said.
The Supreme People's Court on Tuesday underscored the importance of high-quality and efficient legal services in advancing the construction of free trade pilot zones. It disclosed five concluded cases to demonstrate judicial protection for various market entities.
The cases span multiple fields, including international air transportation, China-Europe freight trains and cross-border e-commerce, representing common disputes in free trade pilot zones.
"In handling cases, Chinese judges have fully respected business entities and adhered to the principle of equal protection for every litigant, regardless of their origin," the top court said.
It noted that the legal process also implements a coordinated approach to promote the rule of law both domestically and in foreign affairs.
"Our aim is to regulate the free trade market, prevent risks, ensure the healthy operation of the pilot zones and help build a first-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based and internationalized," it added.
In one disclosed case, a company in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province sold silk pillowcases on Amazon Germany as part of its cross-border e-commerce business.
Following Amazon's rules, the company stored its products in Amazon's German warehouses.
In April 2021, Amazon asked the company to remove all its goods from the shelves due to platform rules. However, Amazon did not provide cross-border return shipping services, so the company hired another corporation to pick up its 1,936 items and ship them back to China.
The corporation, based in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, outsourced the task to a German enterprise because it did not have its own warehouses in Germany. The German company lost 581 items in the shipping process.
As a result, the Heilongjiang company sued the Suzhou corporation in a Chinese court, seeking more than 75,000 yuan ($10,375) in compensation for the lost goods.
