Jiangsu innovates legal services to shore up advanced manufacturing

The judicial administration of East China's Jiangsu province has contributed considerably to the development of the province's advanced manufacturing sector with its innovative legal service model. 

Focusing on the province's 13 advanced manufacturing industrial clusters, the model, referred to as "2+1", consists of two types of legal service platforms, based either in the province's industrial parks or abroad, and a mechanism providing legal services for key home-grown industries. 

So far, the model has been applied to 220 major provincial-level projects, putting forward at least 1,044 legal proposals. The industrial park-based platforms have conducted legal risk reviews for over 50,000 enterprises above a designated size while the overseas-based ones have counseled clients of various types more than 3,700 times. 

Targeting industrial parks 

To keep various industrial chains up and running amid the COVID-19 prevention period, the provincial judicial department instructed the legal service platforms based in industrial parks to take 15 concrete measures aimed at helping enterprises tackle problems like debt risks and contract-related disputes. 

They also lent great support to the province's major projects by compiling legal guidance, holding lectures, conducting legal risk examinations and mediating disputes. 

During a 100 day-long province-wide enterprise-related dispute resolution campaign, the department organized 253 mediation teams to help enterprises screen and address debt and labor disputes. 

In a bid to improve relevant legislation, the department has helped to develop six provincial regulations on such issues as business environments, finance and social credit, and has reviewed 27 provincial-level regulatory documents on economic affairs since the beginning of this year. 

It also launched more than 130 online legal services to advance the pilot commitment and notification system aimed at cutting unnecessary administrative certificates. 

So far this year, 1.96 million new market entities, a 34.1 percent rise from last year, have popped up across the province, bringing the total number to over 11.81 million, a year-on-year growth of 16.3 percent. 

Improving foreign-related legal services 

Aimed at facilitating enterprises' overseas expansion, Jiangsu has set up legal service centers in 16 countries whose services can cover all the major countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. With their support, over 160 Jiangsu-based enterprises have seen their overseas projects begin operating. 

The provincial judicial department has joined hands with 10 other authorities to develop a guideline on the building of overseas legal service centers. 

Meanwhile, the province has also strengthened legal support for its free trade pilot zone by taking such steps as releasing a regulation for the zone and establishing a public legal service center within it. 

It also set up a mediation center and an arbitration center, both of which are committed to settling international commercial disputes. 

Progress has also been made in cultivating foreign-related lawyers. So far, there have been 216 such lawyers in Jiangsu with their expertise spread across nine areas. The province also established four overseas training centers for these professionals to gain hands-on experiences. 

Supporting technological innovations 

Through cooperation with other IPR protection agencies and establishment of IPR-related legal service and arbitration centers, the department has been able to provide legal services in the whole IPR protection process, and to solve IPR-related disputes in diverse ways. 

The department is also actively applying new technologies to IPR protection in emerging industries like e-commerce, and promoting cooperation between legal and other professional services like accounting and auditing to serve innovative market entities. 

In addition, the department and the provincial lawyers' association have assisted courts in handling over 1,800 bankruptcy and restructuring cases, helping 78 prospective enterprises overcome their financial difficulties.