China Justice Observer

中司观察

EnglishArabicChinese (Simplified)DutchFrenchGermanHindiItalianJapaneseKoreanPortugueseRussianSpanishSwedishHebrewIndonesianVietnameseThaiTurkishMalay

CFM 101 Series: What Documents Do I Need to Prepare to File a Lawsuit in China?

Tue, 26 Oct 2021
Contributors: Meng Yu 余萌

avatar

In our previous post, Mr. Chenyang Zhang introduced the documents that foreign companies need to prepare for litigation in China.

Mr. Chenyang Zhang mentioned in Foreign Companies Prepare for China’s Civil Litigation:

Apart from pleadings and evidence, foreign companies in Chinese courts need to complete a series of formalities, which can sometimes be somewhat cumbersome. Therefore, it is necessary to spare sufficient time (and costs) to get ready.

Specifically, If you are a foreign company, then you need to prepare the following documents:

  1. Business license of your company, to indicate who you are;
  2. Bylaws or resolution of the board of directors of your company, to indicate who is your company’s legal representative or authorized representative in this lawsuit;
  3. Certified documents, to indicate what is the name and position of your company’s legal representative or the authorized representative;
  4. Passport or other identity documents of your company’s legal representative or the authorized representative;
  5. Power of attorney, to mandate a Chinese lawyer and signed by your company’s legal representative or the authorized representative;
  6. Notarization and authentication documents, to prove the authenticity of these materials as described above.

It will take you some time and cost to prepare the above documents.

Mr. Chenyang Zhang described these documents in more detail:

1. Certificates of Subject Qualification: ‘who am I’ and ‘who represents me’

To participate in China’s civil litigation, the certificates of subject qualification that foreign companies need to submit include:

  • Business License, or the certificate document on good standing issued by enterprise registration authority;
  • Documents certifying the status of the legal representative or the authorized representative (e.g. the company‘s bylaws, resolution of the board of directors, etc.);
  • Documents certifying the identity (“identity certificate”) of the legal representative or the authorized representative, including his/her name and position;
  • Passport or other identity documents of the legal representative or the authorized representative.

If a foreign company has a legal representative, like a Chinese company’s registered ‘legal representative’, he or she may also participate in the litigation on behalf of the company. In order to certify his or her status, the foreign company generally needs to submit its bylaws or other similar documents.

As for the foreign company without a legal representative, it is required to specifically empower an ‘authorized representative’ to participate in the lawsuit. In this respect, the foreign company needs to submit a related board resolution made pursuant to its bylaws.

2. Power of attorney: ‘who is my lawyer’

The foreign companies often need to mandate Chinese lawyers, and hence need to submit the power of attorney to the courts. The power of attorney shall be signed by the legal representative or the authorized representative as described above.

3. Notarization and authentication: ‘my instruments are authentic’

Most of the subject qualification documents and the authorization procedures of foreign companies are formed outside the territory of China. In order to confirm the authenticity of these materials, Chinese laws require that the content and the formation process of the materials be notarized by a local foreign notary (the step of “notarization”), and then be authenticated by the Chinese embassy or consulate in that country so as to certify that the signature or seal of the notary is true (the step of “authentication”).

The time and cost you will spend on notarization and authentication depend on the notary and the Chinese embassy or consulate where you are located. We suggest you consult your local lawyer or notary.

 

The Cross-border Family Matters 101 Series (‘CFM 101 Series’) provides an introduction to China-related cross-border family matters (marriage and succession), and covers the knowledge essential to cross-border family matter management.

 

* * *

Do you need support in Cross-Border Family Matters (Marriage and Succession)?

CJO Family's team can provide you with China-based consulting service, including case assessment and management, background check, and debt collection (‘Last Mile’ Service). If you encounter any problems in cross-border family matters, or if you wish to share your story, you can contact our Client Manager Julia Yuan (julia.yuan@chinajusticeobserver.com).

CJO Family is a product of China Justice Observer.

If you want to know more about CJO Family, please click here.

If you want to know more about CJO Family cross-border family matters service, please click here.

If you wish to read more CJO Family articles on cross-border family matters, please click here.

Photo by Andreas Felske on Unsplash

Contributors: Meng Yu 余萌

Save as PDF

You might also like

China Updates Regulation for State Secrets Law

In June 2024, China revised the implementing regulation for its State Secrets Law, enhancing classification procedures, personnel confidentiality management, and secrecy inspection standards.

China Issues Regulation on Rare Earth Administration

In April 2024, China introduced its first comprehensive regulation on rare earth management, addressing production, circulation, and reserves to ensure a regulated market and sustainable industry development.

China Revises Frontier Health and Quarantine Law

In June 2024, China revised its Frontier Health and Quarantine Law (国境卫生检疫法) to enhance measures against infectious disease transmission, including new quarantine protocols and medical priority for affected individuals.

China Issues New Regulations to Combat Cyber Violence

In June 2024, China's Cyberspace Administration, along with several ministries, issued new regulations to strengthen the governance of cyber violence, focusing on content management, user protection, and legal accountability.

China Enacts Tariff Law

In April 2024, China's legislature adopted the Tariff Law, effective December 1, 2024, establishing the legislative framework for tariff administration and clarifying tariff authorities, payers, exemptions, and preferential policies.

China Enacts Academic Degrees Law

China's legislature passed the Academic Degrees Law to regulate degree granting, ensure degree quality, and protect the rights of degree applicants, effective January 1, 2025.