$383m in legal aid paid to litigants over 3 years

China has paid 2.67 billion yuan ($383.9 million) in legal aid to litigants involved in lawsuits over the past three years, an official with the Supreme People's Court said Tuesday.

The money was given to people who had difficulty paying their legal costs in the hope of solving disputes and upholding justice, according to Zhu Erjun, deputy director of the top court's Compensation Office.

Litigants involved in about 120,000 cases nationwide applied for legal aid from 2015 to 2017.

State funds covered most of the payouts, Zhu said at a news conference. "It shows the determination of the nation and the top court to resolve the difficulties that litigants meet and to protect litigants' rights," he said.

Legal aid is essential to guaranteeing universal access to justice, he said, adding that the top court has issued legal documents to lay out who qualifies for support and what they can receive.

According to the Criminal Procedure Law, legal aid is open to any defendant or plaintiff who does not have an income and cannot afford the cost of a lawyer.