Education on legal matters strengthened

Editor's note: This year marks the fifth anniversary of the introduction of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law. This story is the third in a series exploring its implementation across the country.

On a wet October afternoon in Beijing, a group of teenage students gathered around a mediation table to discuss a potential court case. Some scrutinized "evidence bags" and debated "property allocation", while others consulted the Civil Code to confirm the validity of "wills".

This was not an actual trial but an immersive legal workshop where students took on the roles of plaintiffs, defendants and judges to navigate an inheritance dispute.

The session, centered on wills and property division, was part of an innovative initiative by Haidian District People's Court to make the law more relatable and accessible to young people.

Under the guidance of Sun Jiayun, who assists judges in case handling at the court, the students from Beijing 101 High School completed the workshop within an hour, learning not only about the legal validity of wills, but also judicial procedures such as court investigation, evidence exchange and statements.

Legal education in China is undergoing a transformation, and it now offers customized courses for different participants, according to Sun.

This transformation is a result of the implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, which emphasizes the need to focus on the effectiveness of legal education, particularly by strengthening law education for young people.

On Monday and Tuesday, at a central conference on work related to overall law-based governance in Beijing, President Xi Jinping instructed that efforts should be intensified on advancing the rule of law across various sectors in the nation's modernization drive.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, called for across-the-board efforts to ensure society-wide observance of the law.

Zhao Leji, chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, also underscored the priority of law-based governance, stressing the need to deepen the endeavor to build a law-abiding society.

The meeting coincided with the fifth anniversary of the introduction of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, which requires upholding a people-centered approach in advancing the building of the rule of law, and continuously enhancing the legal awareness and literacy of the entire public.

Sparking interest

Han Chu, a sophomore from the high school, played the role of a "judge" that afternoon.

During the workshop, he listened carefully to the statements of classmates playing the plaintiff and defendant, verified the various items of evidence they provided, and frequently consulted the provisions related to wills in the Civil Code.

The script, adapted from real cases, revolved around three siblings who brought their deceased parents' handwritten, printed and audio-recorded wills to court, with each claiming sole inheritance.

Han, guided by Sun, concluded that all three wills had legal flaws in accordance with the code, ruling that the family's assets should be divided equally among the three children.

"Not only was this activity incredibly interesting, but it truly helped me grasp legal concepts. I've gained a much deeper understanding of the law by taking part in the workshop," Han said.

His classmate Hu Shihan said: "The activity felt much more real than just reading textbooks. By stepping into a character's shoes, I experienced the courtroom process firsthand, which let me understand what I learned in class."

Sun beamed with satisfaction at the students' engagement. "For young people, such an immersive method is key to providing legal education," she said. "Reading law books and observing trials used to feel distant. By becoming the judges and litigants involved, their engagement and understanding deepen."

"Our primary goal was never just to teach them laws, but to ignite a genuine interest. After all, interest is the best teacher, and that's the most important foundation for any learning," Sun added.

Easy language

However, when educating the elderly, Sun uses a different set of materials — large fonts and case studies without legal jargon or complex provisions.

"The key of offering legal education to older people lies in plain language and everyday cases," she said after sharing the topics of a will and property allocation with seniors at Yanyuan community in Beijing's Haidian district.

Sun compared "making a will" to "cooking your own meal" in her course, explaining: "If you want to distribute your house and money according to your own ideas, you need to specify in the will who gets what and how much. It's like cooking for yourself — you decide what to eat and how much."

For statutory inheritance, she compared it to "ready-made meals", saying: "If you don't have specific ideas, the Civil Code will help you. It prepares 'meals' for you, which means your assets will be divided equally."

Zhang Dejun, 66, welcomed these comparisons. "They make it easier for me to understand the legal issues," she said. "At my age, it's natural to start thinking about making a will and distributing assets. The legal course is exactly what I need, and I've learned a lot."

Sun highlighted that when educating seniors, it is crucial to use language that they can easily understand. "They don't need the legal definition of a 'legacy support agreement', but they must understand the risks of not planning ahead."

Tailored education

Thanks to the tailored education, Qian Shuo, another judges' assistant from the Haidian court, said the public's overall legal awareness has been enhanced.

"Many people coming to us are more knowledgeable. Instead of saying 'I don't know the law, but this is unfair', they can cite specific legal provisions and fight for their legitimate rights," she said.

Official data shows that since 2021, the court's staff have visited more than 100 communities, schools and enterprises across the district, providing in-person legal education nearly 600 times.

The staff have stimulated the public's interest in the law through short videos, and helped build legal education centers in parks, libraries and technological compounds.

"Legal education is not a one-way street; it's a two-way interaction," said Fang Xu, who works for the court's litigation service center. "Through this process, I've learned to see things from the residents' perspectives and empathize with their conflicts, with deeper understanding about their legal demand."

In addition to face-to-face interactions, legal-based television dramas and films have also found audiences over the past few years, attracting millions of viewers and encouraging judicial workers to interpret legal issues on the screen.

Zhang Tongyu, from Beijing's Chaoyang District People's Court, has interpreted the laws involved in the relevant cases in No More Bets, a film about telecom fraud, providing an analysis of these related legal issues to the public.

According to a law on publicity and education regarding the rule of law, which took effect on Nov 1, legal education, as a lifelong education for citizens, should be incorporated into the national education system.

The law stipulates that schools and internet platforms should provide stronger legal education for young people.