On July 4, 2023, the annual Guangdong Maritime Trial Working Conference was held in Guangzhou, with nearly 50 people in attendance, including leaders, judges and judge assistants from the Fourth Civil Division of the Supreme People's Court, the Fourth Civil Division of the Guangzhou High People's Court, and the Guangzhou Maritime Court (GZMC). The conference was chaired by Xiao Zhixiong, a CPC Committee Member and Vice President of GZMC. 

Rao Qing, Deputy Chief Judge of the Fourth Civil Division of the Guangzhou High People's Court, began by reporting data on maritime cases that were remanded for retrial or whose judgments were amended in the second instance in Guangdong in 2021 and 2022. Over the past two years, the second instance remandment/amendment rate has continued to decline, indicating the continuous improvement in the quality of maritime trials in the first instance. Rao Qing analyzed the problems of fact-finding and application of law in the first instance and pointed out the direction for further efforts. Ou Haiyan, Presiding Judge of the Fourth Civil Division of the Supreme People's Court, delivered an excellent speech at the conference on the difference between legal analysis and logical analysis and other issues concerning the theory and practice in trials at different levels of courts. She Qiongsheng, Chief Judge of the Fourth Civil Division of the Guangzhou High People's Court, pointed out in the summary of the conference that Guangdong maritime judges should reinforce their political stance, strengthen the substantive resolution of maritime disputes, and achieve high-quality court trial, high-quality legal instruments, and high-quality cases in maritime disputes, so that Guangdong will continue to be at the forefront of the country in terms of maritime trial. 

Before the conference, the judges of the courts at three levels also jointly held a Communist Party theme event titled "Mindful of the mandate to learn ideas, be grateful and forge ahead to cast loyalty" and visited the Thirteen Hongs Museum in Guangzhou to feel the pioneering spirit of daring to be the first in the development of ancient China's Maritime Silk Road. 

The Guangdong Maritime Trial Working Conference is formerly known as the Guangdong Maritime Trial Communication and Coordination Conference. Since 2003, the heads and judges of the Fourth Civil Division of the Supreme People's Court, the Fourth Civil Division of the Guangzhou High People's Court, and the GZMC have met annually for the Maritime Trial Communication and Coordination Conference. Except for last year, when the conference was not held due to the epidemic, 19 sessions have been held by the courts at three levels. This is unique in the history of maritime trials in China. All previous sessions of the Guangdong Maritime Trial Communication and Coordination Conference have solidified the two-way communication between the higher and lower courts, ensured the implementation of supervision and guidance, unified the scale of judgments, maintained judicial authority, improved the efficiency of case handling, facilitated the strategy of high-quality trials, improved the quality of the team, and enhanced the credibility of the judiciary. In order to strengthen the role of Guangdong maritime trials in serving and safeguarding China's strategy of building a maritime power, the Belt and Road initiative and the construction of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Guangdong Maritime Trial Communication and Coordination Conference has been officially renamed as the "Guangdong Maritime Trial Working Conference" from this year.