【Commentary】 On June 6, "World Environment Day", the Supreme People's Court held a press conference to release the "China Environmental Resources Trial (5)" and typical cases and the "China Environmental Justice Development Report (2022)". Yang Linping, vice president of the Supreme People's Court, said at the meeting that the two reports were released at the same time, aiming to show the latest achievements in the integration and development of environmental resources trial practice and theoretical research.
Yang Linping, Vice President of the Supreme People's Court
In 2022, courts across the country accepted 273177 first-instance environmental resource cases and concluded 246104 trials. The Supreme People's Court continues to promote the uniform application of laws, formulating judicial interpretations on the protection of forest resources, the protection of wildlife resources, and punitive damages for environmental infringement. Actively cooperate with relevant legislative work, and study and put forward legislative opinions on the formulation of laws and regulations such as the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Ecological Protection Law, the Cultural Relics Protection Law, the Black Soil Protection Law, and the Forest Law Implementation Regulations.
Yang Linping said that in 2022, the people's courts will continue to further promote the reform and innovation of the environmental justice system and mechanism, and the professional level of environmental resources trials will steadily improve. High courts in many places across the country have set up environmental resources tribunals.
Yang Linping, Vice President of the Supreme People's Court
As of December 2022, the Supreme People's Court and 12 higher people's courts and branches of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps have all set up environmental resources tribunals, following the establishment of environmental resources courts in Nanjing, Lanzhou, Kunming and Zhengzhou, the Supreme People's Court approved the establishment of environmental resources courts in Changchun and Urumqi, and the full coverage of the four levels of courts of professional institutions has been continuously improved.
Lu Zhongmei, vice chairman of the Environment and Resources Protection Committee of the National People's Congress, said that China has formed an environmental resources judicial system with Chinese characteristics, creating a lot of "green justice" experience that "no one has me".
Lu Zhongmei, vice chairman of the Environment and Resources Protection Committee of the National People's Congress
In 2022, the professional development of environmental resources trials will have distinctive characteristics. The development trend of the specialized environmental litigation system is good, and the professional ability has reached a new level; Breakthroughs have been made in the key areas of environmental justice, and the foundation for specialization has become increasingly solid. The professional function of environmental justice has been brought into play steadily, and the number of environmental resource cases has shown a downward trend.
【Commentary】In 2022, China's environmental justice specialization system is basically mature.
Lu Zhongmei, vice chairman of the Environment and Resources Protection Committee of the National People's Congress
The system of specialization of environmental justice is basically mature. In 2022, the number of specialized environmental resources trial institutions nationwide increased by 12.89% year-on-year, "taking root" in systematic and professional fields. The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate issued a total of eight judicial documents, unifying the adjudication standards and standards for the application of law in environmental cases, and detailing the substantive rules for environmental civil litigation. In 8, the Supreme People's Court released the report "Judicial Protection of Biodiversity in China", providing practical judicial solutions for global environmental governance, including biodiversity conservation.
Li Jiali reported from Beijing
Responsible Editor: [Li Ji]