As the nation earnestly studies and implements the guiding principles from the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and conscientiously follows General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches delivered at the ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the 75th anniversary of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Guangzhou Maritime Court (GZMC) held a symposium on providing high-quality maritime trial services to support the construction of "New Maritime Guangdong" on September 27, 2024. Attendees included Zhou Bin, NPC Deputy; Lin Li, Guangdong Provincial People's Congress Deputy; Huang Yanyun, Guangzhou Municipal People's Congress Deputy; Lin Cuizhu, Member of CPPCC Guangdong Provincial Committee; as well as 14 representatives from maritime administrative organs including the Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration, the Guangdong Branch of China Coast Guard, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong, the Guangdong Provincial Marine Comprehensive Law Enforcement General Brigade, alongside representatives from port and shipping enterprises and the Bar Association. The participants offered their insights and suggestions. Chen Youqiang, Party Secretary and President of GZMC, attended the event.

The attending representatives highly praised GZMC for its professional expertise and proactive contributions to the high-quality development of Guangdong's marine economy. From their respective professional perspectives, they provided constructive opinions and suggestions on how to further enhance maritime trial services to support the development of "New Maritime Guangdong", serve the Belt and Road Initiative, contribute to the development of the GBA, promote the high-quality development of new quality marine productive forces, resolve maritime disputes through diversified mechanisms, and modernize maritime trial work.

NPC Deputy Zhou Bin noted that in recent years, GZMC has, under the people-centered philosophy, made outstanding contributions to developing Guangdong into a strong maritime province and building "New Maritime Guangdong". He emphasized the need to continue to strengthen efforts in legal publicity, Court Open Days, the development of diversified dispute resolution mechanisms, digital empowerment, and the handling of cross-border e-commerce cases to fully foster the construction of "New Maritime Guangdong".

Lin Li, Guangdong Provincial People's Congress Deputy, acknowledged the increased collaboration between the Guangzhou procuratorial organs and GZMC in recent years, which has positively contributed to the construction of marine ecological civilization. She called for both judicial and procuratorial organs to fully utilize their functional advantages in providing high-quality judicial services for the development of a maritime power, a "Beautiful GBA", and a "Green, Beautiful Guangdong".

Huang Yanyun, Guangzhou Municipal People's Congress Deputy, suggested adopting a prudent and inclusive approach to guide enterprises toward healthy and balanced development. She advocated for the introduction of judicial tolerance measures and fault-tolerant mechanisms to provide companies with more opportunities for growth and survival.

Lin Cuizhu, Member of CPPCC Guangdong Provincial Committee, proposed that Guangdong should strive to become a preferred destination for maritime dispute resolution by participating in international maritime judicial exchanges, improving the domestic legal framework, and cultivating high-quality maritime legal experts.

Yu Chao, Deputy Director of the Guangdong Branch of China Coast Guard, recommended that the maritime court further expand the pilot scope of maritime criminal cases and broaden the channels for handling cases involving unregistered vessels as well as the disposal of rare species such as red coral and giant clams.

Luo Puqing, CPC Committee Member and Deputy Director of the Guangdong Provincial Marine Comprehensive Law Enforcement General Brigade, suggested enhancing coordination between judicial adjudication and administrative law enforcement, focusing on key areas of marine comprehensive law enforcement, and strongly advancing the development of a law-based government.

Xu Jianghao, Level IV Division Rank Official of the Marine Division at the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong, proposed strengthening communication and collaboration among the Court, the Coast Guard, the Marine Comprehensive Law Enforcement Team, and other authorities. He emphasized the need to promote effective coordination between judicial adjudication and administrative law enforcement, and to actively participate in the revision of laws and regulations regarding marine environmental protection.

Liu Feng, Deputy Chief of the Regulatory and Normative Division of the Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration, suggested that GZMC provide professional opinions and advice during the construction of offshore wind farms and marine ranching, in order to enhance the capability and standards of law-based administration.

Qi Hao, Deputy General Manager of the Legal Affairs and Risk Management Department of COSCO Shipping Bulk Co., Ltd., recommended that law enforcement and judicial authorities focus on issues such as the release of cargo without a bill of lading, the formulation of international rules, and judicial jurisdiction in trade and transportation practices, and provide corresponding judicial advice.

Luo Yusong, Director of the Legal Affairs Center at Guangdong Provincial Port & Shipping Group Co., Ltd., proposed strengthening the coordination between government agencies and courts to formulate specialized compliance guidelines for marine ranching. He also advocated for promoting the development of local regulations to provide legal support for the growth of new quality marine productive forces.

Chen Qun, Secretary-General of the Maritime Affairs and Commerce Law Committee of the Guangdong Lawyers Association, suggested strengthening the China Maritime Trial Network, deepening the development of diversified dispute resolution mechanisms, and steadily enhancing the international credibility of China's maritime justice.

Wu Xingkui, Deputy Director of the Maritime Affairs and Commerce Law Committee of the Guangdong Lawyers Association, recommended implementing a variety of measures to shorten case processing times, strengthen the explanation and reasoning in judicial rulings, and urge relevant authorities to address the chaos in the judicial appraisal and evaluation industries.

Chen Youqiang, Party Secretary and President of GZMC, expressed his gratitude on behalf of the Court to the NPC deputies, CPPCC members, and all sectors of society for their attention and support for GZMC's adjudication work over the past 40 years. He acknowledged the insightful suggestions from the participants regarding the modernization of maritime adjudication, noting that GZMC would carefully evaluate and study each idea and ensure the implementation of reforms to advance the development of maritime trial. President Chen emphasized that GZMC would further implement the guiding principles from the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and the important speeches and instructions delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping during his inspection tour of Guangdong. In line with the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee's "1310" Strategy and the specific arrangements of the Fifth Plenary Session of the 13th CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee, the Court would focus on building "New Maritime Guangdong" and earnestly fulfill its maritime trial duties to support the high-quality development of marine economy in Guangdong. To achieve breakthroughs in key tasks, GZMC will adhere to seven guiding principles: 1. Supporting the strategy of building a strong maritime province by innovating the maritime trial mechanisms and seeking new breakthroughs in providing high-quality maritime judicial services to boost the development of "New Maritime Guangdong". 2. Supporting the construction of the "One Point, Two Places" in the GBA, seeking new breakthroughs in the innovation of maritime judicial assistance systems and mechanisms. 3. Supporting the new maritime economic models, by advancing the development of new marine quality productive forces and seeking fresh breakthroughs in stimulating corporate innovation and creativity through maritime justice. 4. Supporting new growth areas of export-oriented economy, by fostering the development of cross-border e-commerce logistics and seeking new breakthroughs in ensuring stable development of foreign trade through maritime justice. 5. Supporting maritime ecological security, by coordinating marine economic development with environmental protection and making new breakthroughs in expanding the scale and optimizing the structure of the marine economy through maritime justice. 6. Safeguarding national maritime rights and interests, by providing strong judicial support to Chinese maritime enterprises as they go global, and seeking new breakthroughs in shaping the international maritime legal order through maritime justice. 7. Supporting pilot programs for institutional and rule-based openness, by effectively telling China's maritime judicial stories in ways that are accessible, comprehensible, and impactful to international audiences, and seeking new breakthroughs in enhancing China's international discourse power through maritime justice.