Guangxi innovates in advancing foreign-related rule of law for high-level opening-up

As a pivotal gateway for China's opening-up and cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region in South China has been leveraging its geographical advantages to pioneer innovative practices in advancing foreign-related rule of law. By focusing on platform development, legal services, and legal publicity, Guangxi is strengthening legal support for building a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

Guangxi's approach features systematic top-level design and coordinated institutional innovation, with continuous priority given to the development of foreign-related rule of law. In April 2025, Guangxi held a conference on foreign-related rule of law, outlining its goal of upholding a distinctive path aligned with the region's local conditions.

This was followed in November 2025 by the issuance of detailed policy documents aimed at establishing a comprehensive foreign-related legal mechanism that integrates legislation, law enforcement, administration of justice, public legal compliance, legal services, and talent development.

In addition to improving its foreign-related legal system, Guangxi has also been actively promoting cross-border legal cooperation. In June 2025, the first border meeting between Chinese and Vietnamese judicial administrative authorities was held in the region's capital Nanning, marking a historic leap towards institutionalized and regularized cross-border legal collaboration between the two sides.

Moreover, the Justice Department of Guangxi issued documents on building the China-Vietnam Border Corridor of Rule of Law and Friendly Cooperation, aiming to maintain ongoing communication with judicial departments in Vietnam's four border provinces and turn bilateral agreements into tangible outcomes.

In recent years, Guangxi has intensified efforts to develop foreign-related legal service platforms and systems, offering comprehensive and one-stop legal support. The region has established and improved three public legal service centers and launched platforms such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Enterprise Service Center, which has so far provided legal services to 72,000 individuals.

In addition, Guangxi has promoted the substantive operation of legal service institutions, including the Nanning Office of the Belt and Road Legal Service Association, the China-ASEAN Commercial Arbitration Cooperation Center, and the Guangxi International Civil and Commercial Mediation Center.

The region has been committed to expanding the global reach of Guangxi's legal service providers. By January 2026, 12 law firms from the region had set up 14 branches in ASEAN countries and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

Meanwhile, the first representative office in China of a Vietnamese law firm has been established in Nanning. Local arbitration commissions across Guangxi have also set up international arbitration courts, enhancing the region's capacity to handle cross-border disputes.

Guangxi's Justice Department continues to expand the China-ASEAN Laws and Regulations Database and has collaborated with local universities to develop an AI-powered system for ASEAN-related legal consultation, offering guidance to enterprises engaged in cross-border operations.

Through border mediation organizations, Guangxi appoints mediators, including Chinese and Vietnamese residents, lawyers, and chamber of commerce members, to resolve disputes at the grassroots level and address conflicts at their source.

Beyond legal services, Guangxi has made strides in integrating legal outreach into its border governance and opening-up framework through innovative forms such as producing Chinese-Vietnamese situation comedies and adapting local folk songs. These initiatives have expanded the region's outreach of foreign-related rule of law and helped build an integrated domestic-international legal outreach network.

Guangxi has also incorporated legal outreach into border-area infrastructure, creating a multidimensional network spanning ports, villages, and communities. These efforts ensure that legal knowledge becomes part of residents' daily lives, enabling them to access essential information anytime and anywhere.