· Document Number：No. 321 [2015] of the Supreme People’s Court

· Area of Law： State Organs Banking & Finance

· Level of Authority： Working Documents of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate

· Date issued：11-13-2015

· Effective Date：11-13-2015

· Issuing Authority： Supreme People's Court China Banking Regulatory Commission

· Status： Effective

Notice of the Supreme People's Court and the China Banking Regulatory Commission on Jointly Issuing the Work Rules for the Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control of People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions
(No. 321 [2015] of the Supreme People's Court)
The higher people's courts of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government; the Military Court of the People's Liberation Army; and the Production and Construction Corps Branch of the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region; all local offices of the China Banking Regulatory Commission (“CBRC”); all policy banks, large-scale banks, and joint-stock banks; Postal Savings Bank of China; and all provincial rural credit cooperative unions:
For the purposes of fully implementing the Opinions of the Supreme People's Court and the China Banking Regulatory Commission on Conducting Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control and Joint Credit Discipline by People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions (No. 266 [2014], SPC), and promoting the construction of the network enforcement inquiry and control mechanism in an accelerated manner, and regulating the network enforcement inquiry and control work between people's courts and banking financial institutions (hereinafter referred to as “financial institutions”) according to the law, the Supreme People's Court (“SPC”) and the China Banking Regulatory Commission (“CBRC”) have researched and developed the Work Rules for the Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control of People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions, which is hereby jointly issued for your compliance and implementation. The specific requirements are as follows:
I. Where the “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system has been established with the SPC, the network inquiry and control functions shall be improved before the end of February 2016; where the system has not been established, the head offices of all banking financial institutions shall complete the connection between their networks and the networks of the SPC through the dedicated lines between the SPC and the CBRC before the end of December 2015; and the network inquiry and control functions shall be launched before the end of February 2016.
II. The enforcement bureaus of the higher people's courts of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government and the Enforcement Bureau of the Production and Construction Corps Branch of the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region shall be responsible for supervising and implementing the construction of the “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system between the banking financial institutions and the SPC established by the head offices within their respective jurisdictions, and report the progress to the SPC.
III. The higher people's courts of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government, the Military Court of the People's Liberation Army, the Production and Construction Corps Branch of the Higher People's Court of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, all local offices of the CBRC, and the head offices of all banking financial institutions shall respectively designate a leader in charge, a business specialist, and a technician to be specifically in charge of the network inquiry and control work, fill out the contact lists (see below), and respectively submit them to the SPC and the CBRC before November 30, 2015. All local corporate banking financial institutions shall submit the contact lists to the local offices of the CBRC, and uniformly submit them to the SPC and the CBRC after summarizing.
All local offices of the CBRC shall forward this Notice to the local sub-office of the CBRC and the corporate banking financial institutions within the respective jurisdictions.
Contact person of the Supreme People's Court: Sun Jianguo
Tel: 010 -67557112; fax: 010-67557108
Contact person of the China Banking Regulatory Commission: Cao Yan
Tel: 010 -66279613; fax: 010-66299118
Supreme People's Court
China Banking Regulatory Commission
November 13, 2015
Work Rules for the Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control of People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions
For the purposes of regulating the work of network enforcement inquiry and control between people's courts and banking financial institutions (“hereinafter referred to as “financial institutions”) according to the law, improving the efficiency of network inquiry, freeze (including continued freeze and freeze removal), deduction, handling the bank accounts, bank cards, deposits, and other financial assets of persons subject to enforcement, and other work, and protecting the lawful rights and interests of parties concerned and interested parties, these Rules are developed under the Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on the Network Inquiry and Freeze of the Deposits of the Persons Subject to Enforcement and the Opinions of the Supreme People's Court and the China Banking Regulatory Commission on Conducting Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control and Joint Credit Discipline by People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions (No. 266 [2014], SPC).
1. When taking inquiry, freeze, deduction, and other enforcement measures (hereinafter referred to as “inquiry and control measures”) against the bank accounts, bank cards, deposits, and other financial assets of the persons subject to enforcement, people's courts may conduct network connection with financial institutions through dedicated lines, financial networks, and other ways, send the data and electronic legal documents on the inquiry and control measures taken to financial institutions, and receive the result data and electronic receipts on the inquiry, freeze, deduction, handling, etc. of financial institutions.
The aforesaid “financial assets” means various kinds of assets that may be subject to enforced sale and whose transaction prices and fruits may be remitted to the specific associated capital accounts of financial institutions in the form of deposits. l/
2. Where the Supreme People's Court (“SPC”) establishes a “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system with the head offices of financial institutions, the inquiry and control data and electronic legal instruments of courts at all levels across the country shall be sent to financial institutions in a real-time manner through the “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system; and after financial institutions complete the assistant inquiry and control items, the inquiry and control results data and the electronic receipts shall be reported to the enforcement courts in a real-time manner through the “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system.
Where the higher people's courts of all provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government) have established a “point-to-point” network enforcement inquiry and control system with the branches of financial institutions, the head offices of the financial institutions shall authorize relevant branches to conduct inquiry, freeze, and deduction of national accounts and financial assets in their systems.
The Supreme People's Court and the higher people's courts of all provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government) shall be responsible for establishing the network inquiry and control systems between people's courts and financial institutions respectively with the head offices and the provincial branches of the financial institutions through the specialized financial networks of the banking regulatory authorities. Financial institutions are not required to establish “point-to-point” network enforcement inquiry and control systems with all intermediary people's courts and basic-level people's courts. The SPC and banking regulatory authorities shall encourage and support the people's courts at all levels to establish more convenient and efficient dispute disposal coordination mechanisms with financial institutions within their respective jurisdictions.
After financial institutions establish a “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control system with the SPC, the SPC and the financial institutions shall jointly issue notices to stop operating the corresponding “point-to-point” network enforcement inquiry and control system. Where financial institutions have established “head office to head office” network enforcement inquiry and control systems with the SPC, financial institutions are no longer required to establish “point-to-point” network enforcement inquiry and control systems with all intermediary people's courts and basic-level people's courts.
3. The people's courts at all levels shall handle registration and recordation of the certificates of the enforcement officers for exercising official duties and keep the scanned copies in the network enforcement inquiry and control system.
When an enforcement court takes network enforcement inquiry and control measures, the user identity of the enforcement officer shall be confirmed through technical means in the network enforcement inquiry and control system, and the enforcement officer's name, contact number, and scanned copy of the certificate for exercising official duties shall be sent to the financial institution.
4. The people's courts at all levels shall handle the registration and recordation of the special payment accounts for enforcement in the network enforcement inquiry and control system.
When a special payment account for enforcement is increased or changed, relevant information shall be modified in the system, after approval under the provisions.
5. Before taking the network enforcement inquiry and control measures against a person subject to enforcement, an enforcement officer shall check the concerned party's name or title, ID number, unified social credit code, or organization code, and other basic information, to ensure that the information is complete and accurate.
An enforcement officer that finds any error or omission in a party's basic information data shall conduct modification, upon approval for the modification items, contents, reasons, and other items under the provisions.
Where the property of a person subject to enforcement has been subject to inquiry and control measures, except a person subject to enforcement is merged or split, or changes its name or title, the enforcement officer shall not modify or delete its basic information, but may add other basic information.
People's courts shall implement the information modification procedures as prescribed in paragraph 2 and 3 of this article in the case management system and retain records of the modification.
6. An enforcement court that inquires into the information on the bank account, bank card, deposits, and other financial assets of a person subject to enforcement through the network enforcement inquiry and control system shall send the basic information data (including the name or title, certificate type, certificate number or unified social credit code, and organization code of the person subject to enforcement) of the person subject to enforcement to the financial institution. A people's court that connects the network with a financial institution shall make an electronic notice for assistance in enforcement, attach a list of electronic inquiry lists (including the case number, the name of the enforcement court, and the basic information of the person subject to enforcement), and send it to the financial institution in a real-time manner.
An enforcement court that requires a financial institution to assist in the inquiry into the detailed account transaction records of the person subject to enforcement, the name or title of the counterparty, the account number, the deposit bank, and other account transaction information shall specify the specific inquiry time and scope, and other information.
7. A financial institution that assists a people's court in taking network inquiry measures shall, according to the basic information data of the person subject to enforcement provided, conduct inquiry in the entity's production database or real-time backup library, and report the inquiry results in a real-time manner through the network enforcement inquiry and control system.
Where a person subject to enforcement has records of account opening, the financial institution shall report the time of account opening, the name of the bank of deposit, the account name, the account number, the nature of account, the status of account (including the account cancelled), the balance, the contact number, the freeze by competent authority, and other information; and where a person subject to enforcement has other financial assets besides deposits, the financial institution shall report the associated capital account, asset manager, and other information.
Where a person subject to enforcement has not opened any account, the financial institution shall report the information no account opening upon examination.
8. The information on the bank account, bank card, deposits, and other financial assets of a person subject to enforcement inquired into by a people's court with the assistance of a financial institution may be used as clues of enforcement, evidence for refusal to enforce an effective legal document, or basis for closing a case.
A financial institution shall, upon receipt of the data of the inquiry and control measures and the electronic legal documents, generate a receipt on the results of assistance in enforcement to which the electronic seal (it may be the official seal of the entity or the special seal for network inquiry and control) shall be affixed according to the data on the handling results, and report to the enforcement court through the network enforcement inquiry and control system.
The information to be reported by a financial institution shall only be limited to the data of the financial institution that assists in handling the inquiry and control issues in the system of the bank.
9. An enforcement court that takes freeze, continued freeze, freeze removal, deduction, and other enforcement measures against a person subject to enforcement through the network enforcement inquiry and control system shall issue the ruling for enforcement and the notice on assistance in enforcement to which electronic seals are affixed, and the scanned copy of the certificate for exercising official duties of the enforcement officer.
Where an enforcement court takes freeze, continued freeze, freeze removal, deduction, and other enforcement measures against a person subject to enforcement through the network enforcement inquiry and control system, there shall be specific bank account and amount.
10. A financial institution that assists in freezing the deposits of a person subject to enforcement shall freeze the designated account according to the amount required to be frozen by a people's court, and report the corresponding amount to be frozen (the amount required to be frozen), the actual amount frozen, the starting and ending time of freeze, and other information of the frozen account to the people's court.
Where the available balance (amount not yet frozen before this freeze) in the account of a person subject to enforcement is lower than the amount to be frozen, the financial institution shall freeze a limited amount of the designated account according to the amount required to be frozen by the people's court.
Where a competent authority requires a financial institution to conduct freeze waiting in the sequence for a designated account, the financial institution shall, according to the amount required by the competent authority, conduct superposition of the limited quota to be frozen for the designated account, freeze the limited amount, and report the corresponding amount to be frozen (the amount required to be frozen), the actual amount frozen, the starting and ending time of freeze, the records of the previous freeze in sequence, and other information of the frozen account.
Where a competent authority requires a financial institution to conduct continued freeze for a designated account, the financial institution shall extend the deadline for the original freeze item as required by the competent authority, and report the corresponding amount to be frozen (the amount required to be frozen), the actual amount frozen, the starting and ending time of freeze, the records of the previous freeze in sequence, and other information of the frozen account.
11. A competent authority that requires to freeze other financial assets of a person subject to enforcement except the deposits thereof shall specify the specific amount in the notice for the assistance in enforcement. A financial institution shall freeze the bank account of the person subject to enforcement corresponding to the financial assets as required and complete the assistance in freeze through freeze of a limited amount.
12. Where a competent authority, a financial institution or a third party enjoys the pledge rights, security deposits, and other preemptive rights over the deposits and other financial assets in the bank account of a person subject to enforcement, the financial institution shall specify the information on preemptive rights registered in the inquiry results. Where an enforcement court may take freeze measures and a financial institution specifies the priority creditor in the inquiry results, a people's court shall, within 5 working days after the handling, notify the priority creditor of the information on the freeze measures taken. The priority creditor may claim rights from the enforcement court and the enforcement court shall conduct review and handling according to the law. During the period of review and handling, the enforcement court shall not conduct compulsory deduction.
Before the elimination of the preemptive rights of the deposits or financial assets, their value shall not be calculated in the total actual amount frozen; and after the elimination of the preemptive rights, the enforcement court may take deduction, enforced sale, and other enforcement measures according to the law.
Where a person subject to enforcement opens a joint account and other common accounts with a person who is not a party to a case and the person who is not a party to the case enjoys the common right of the deposits and other financial assets in the account, the provisions of the preceding paragraphs shall apply thereto, mutatis mutandis.
13. An enforcement bank that takes the deduction measure against the deposits of a person subject to enforcement through the network enforcement inquiry and control system shall remit the funds to the special payment account of the court for enforcement; and where the deposits of a person subject to enforcement are in foreign currency, the funds shall be remitted to the special foreign currency payment account of the court for enforcement.
14. An enforcement court that takes deduction measure against the deposits of a person subject to enforcement through the network enforcement inquiry and control system shall specify the account subject to deduction, the amount deducted, and the information on the special payment account for enforcement (including the bank name, the account number, and the account name) in the notice for assistance in enforcement. The financial institution shall, according to the requirements of the notice for assistance in enforcement, remit the deposits of the person subject to enforcement to the special payment account of the enforcement court for enforcement.
To deduct the frozen deposits of a person subject to enforcement, an enforcement court is not required to firstly remove the original freeze measures.
15. A financial institution that assists in deducting the deposits of a person subject to enforcement shall specify the actual amount deducted, the amount not deducted (the difference between the original amount to be deducted and the amount actually deducted this time, where an enforcement court deducts the deposits frozen), and other contents in the report receipt.
16. The time when the electronic legal documents and other data on network freeze, deduction, and other enforcement measures are submitted to the network inquiry and control system shall be regarded as the service time.
17. A financial institution that is unable to assist an enforcement court in taking any inquiry and control measure against the bank account, bank card, deposits, and other financial assets of the person subject to enforcement after receiving the inquiry and control data and relevant electronic legal documents shall specify the reasons in the report receipt.
18. People's courts and financial institutions that take such measures as inquiry, freeze, and deduction of bank deposits through the network enforcement inquiry and control system shall not be subject to territorial restrictions.
19. Where a financial institution assists a people's court in handling the network enforcement inquiry and control measures according to the law and the party concerned raises an objection against therewith, the financial institution may notify it of the fact that it shall raise an objection to the enforcement court and notify the party concerned of the name of the enforcement court, the case number, and the name of the enforcement officer.
20. The SPC and the CBRC shall develop the technical specifications for the network enforcement inquiry and control system (including the data format, the legal documents, the sample of the receipt on the inquiry and control results, etc.) as an annex to the specifications.
All higher people's courts shall, according to the technical specifications, transform the case management systems of the courts within their respective jurisdictions, and develop software for the connection with the “head office to head office” network inquiry and control system and the “point-to-point” network inquiry and control system.
All financial institutions shall, according to the technical specifications, transform their business systems, and develop software that connects the “head office to head office” or the “point-to-point” network inquiry and control system and have such network inquiry and control functions as automatic reception, review, handling inquiry, freeze, deduction, and reporting the inquiry and control results.
21. People's courts that handle cases of advance enforcement shall be governed by these Rules.
In preservation enforcement, people's courts may, under the provisions of these Rules, take inquiry and control measures through the network enforcement inquiry and control system.
22. The SPC and the CBRC shall establish a network inquiry and control emergency response mechanism, to be responsible for resolving all matters caused by network inquiry and control between people's courts and financial institutions.
23. All people's courts and financial institutions shall conduct research and development of the network inquiry and control systems under the Technical Specifications for the Network Enforcement Inquiry and Control of People's Courts and Banking Financial Institutions, an annex to these Rules.