Top court warns judges against accepting gifts

Judges and other court employees could lose their jobs or face criminal charges if they take gifts from parties involved in cases they are handling, the Supreme People's Court (SPC) said yesterday.

Personnel are also forbidden from having any kind of commercial relationship with lawyers, or attempting to influence cases being handled by other judges, it said in a statement.

Court staff must not show favoritism when ruling on cases, especially those involving appraisals and auctions, and are forbidden from leaking details of trials, it said.