Smart courts ease access to legal services

Mediation

According to Yang, from Beijing High People's Court, while litigation is now more easily accessible, a large number of disputes have been resolved through mediation or arbitration services provided by the courts.

From January to August last year, 203,472 disputes were resolved through mediation in the capital's courts, a rise of 47 percent year-on-year, Yang said.

"Most of the cases were simple, with clear facts and sufficient evidence, so they didn't need to be resolved via time-consuming, costly, litigation," she said. "We must focus on helping people find the best way to end disputes."

Zhang agreed with that sentiment. In addition to mediation during hearings, his court has turned to 177 external mediators and eight mediation institutions, all of which are experts in the fields related to specific disputes.

"Some are legislators and political advisers who are good at solving family and inheritance disputes brought by community committees, while others are specialists from health associations and internet companies, who have deep knowledge of medical disputes and intellectual property," Zhang said.