BEIJING - The Ministry of Justice said Friday that it would proactively enhance legislative efforts in key sectors to spur high-quality economic development and improve the macroeconomic governance system.

Aiming at building a unified national market and improving the business environment, the ministry has accelerated the process of revising the Anti-Unfair Competition Law in collaboration with relevant authorities, Jiang Shan, an official with the ministry, said at a press conference.

In addition, Jiang highlighted the endeavors to establish a sound legal and regulatory framework for resolving overdue payments owed to enterprises. In the meantime, the revision to the regulations aimed at safeguarding payment for small and medium-sized enterprises is underway.

To fend off and defuse the risks in the financial sector, Jiang said that the ministry will actively promote the revision of the law on the regulation of and supervision over the banking industry, and actively participate in the drafting of the financial law.

ALSO READ: China to improve systems to support high-quality population development

As for building new systems for a higher-standard open economy, the ministry and other relevant departments are considering revising the Foreign Trade Law and the Customs Law, to align with international high-standard economic and trade rules, as well as expand the opening-up, according to the official.

Resolve administrative disputes

Meanwhile, China has intensified efforts to resolve administrative disputes by making full use of the administrative reconsideration system, said Kong Xiangquan, an official of the Ministry of Justice, at the press conference.

In the first half of 2024, administrative agencies for justice across the country received 292,000 administrative reconsideration cases and concluded 225,000 of them.

Administrative reconsideration serves as both a supervisory mechanism to correct government errors and a relief system for resolving administrative disputes, making it a key channel for safeguarding the rights and interests of individuals and businesses, Kong explained.

He said that compared to the same period in 2023, the number of newly accepted administrative reconsideration cases has increased by 150 percent, attributing this growth to the revision of the Law on Administrative Reconsideration, which expanded the system to accommodate a broader range of administrative disputes.

ALSO READ: Xi stresses powering high-quality development with Party discipline education

Kong noted that 202,000 concluded cases, or nearly 90 percent of all such cases, were resolved without resorting to administrative lawsuits, marking a 12.6 percentage point increase from the previous year.

The administrative reconsideration system has also continued to play a crucial role in fostering a favorable business environment, according to Kong.

He said that in the first half of this year, 23,000 administrative reconsideration cases filed by business entities were concluded. 

Services for foreign-related matters

According to the ministry, China has improved the legal system concerning foreign-related matters and will continue to do so to better serve the country's high-level opening up.

Over the years, China has made active efforts to build world-class law firms, train lawyers specifically handling foreign-related matters, and allow lawyers from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions to practice in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, said the ministry.

Wang Zhenjiang, vice-minister of justice, said at the press conference that Chinese law firms have established over 200 branches in 37 countries and regions, with more than 12,000 lawyers specializing in handling foreign-related legal matters.

The ministry has also facilitated the organization of training sessions for legal professionals engaged in handling foreign-related matters. Master programs at universities focused on training such lawyers have enrolled nearly 1,500 students in total.

READ MORE: Extension expected for GBA legal pilot program

Yang Xiangbin, director of the ministry's bureau of public legal service administration, said that a total of 482 lawyers from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions have obtained certificates of practice for the Greater Bay Area since the central government began a trial program in 2020.

 "The experienced lawyers from Hong Kong and Macao have considerably improved the quality of foreign-related legal services," Yang said.

In the future, China will continue improving the legal system concerning foreign-related matters, provide high-quality legal services for Chinese citizens and businesses abroad, and carry out cooperation on law enforcement and justice with the international community, said Wang.

Support has been pledged for Chinese law firms to set up service outlets in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. Efforts will also be made to promote the signing of treaties with more countries on mutual legal assistance and transfer of convicted persons, Wang added.