Supreme People's Court
China's highest People's Court and national judicial authority.
CHINA LEGAL REFERENCE · COURTS
China Courts: Structure, Jurisdiction & Specialist Forums
Explore the People's Court hierarchy, specialist courts, jurisdiction concepts and official court resources.
Court structure
People's Court hierarchy
Actual jurisdiction depends on subject matter, level, location and current procedural rules.
High People's Courts
Provincial-level courts within the ordinary hierarchy.
Intermediate People's Courts
Important first-instance and appellate functions depending on the matter.
Basic People's Courts
Local first-instance courts for many ordinary civil and commercial matters.
Specialist bodies
Specialist courts and specialist judicial bodies
Beijing Financial CourtBeijing's specialist financial court for designated financial disputes and judicial work connected with the capital's financial market.Browse →Beijing Intellectual Property CourtSpecialist IP court in Beijing. Hears many first-instance patent, trademark and unfair-competition cases and selected administrative IP appeals.Browse →Beijing Internet CourtSpecialist court with centralized first-instance jurisdiction in Beijing over specified internet-related disputes, revised from 1 November 2025, with an online-first litigation model.Browse →Chengdu-Chongqing Financial CourtA specialist financial court serving designated financial disputes in the Chengdu-Chongqing region.Browse →Guangzhou Intellectual Property CourtSpecialist IP court in Guangzhou covering South China technology, brand and design disputes within its designated jurisdiction.Browse →Guangzhou Internet CourtInternet court for designated online disputes in Guangzhou, including e-commerce and online-contract matters in its docket.Browse →Hainan Free Trade Port Intellectual Property CourtHainan's specialist intellectual-property court, established for designated technical IP and related cases in the Free Trade Port.Browse →Hangzhou Internet CourtThe first internet court in China, handling designated online disputes connected with Hangzhou’s platform economy.Browse →Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People's CourtThe Supreme People's Court's specialist appellate tribunal for designated technically complex intellectual-property and monopoly cases.Browse →Shanghai Financial CourtSpecialist court for designated financial disputes in Shanghai, including securities, funds, bills and many capital-market cases.Browse →Shanghai Intellectual Property CourtSpecialist IP court for Shanghai, covering patents, trademarks, copyright, trade secrets and technology contracts in the city’s IP-court jurisdiction.Browse →
Important courts
Important courts for international-business research
| Court | City | Type | Focus | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing Financial Court北京金融法院 | Beijing | Court | Designated financial disputes (Beijing) | Open → |
| Beijing Intellectual Property Court北京知识产权法院 | Beijing | Court | Beijing / selected national IP appeals | Open → |
| Beijing Internet Court北京互联网法院 | Beijing | Court | Designated internet cases (Beijing) | Open → |
| Chengdu-Chongqing Financial Court成渝金融法院 | Chongqing | Court | Cross-provincial designated financial disputes in Chongqing and specified parts of Sichuan | Open → |
| China International Commercial Court of the Supreme People's Court最高人民法院国际商事法庭 | Shenzhen / Xi'an | Court | Specified international commercial cases within SPC jurisdiction | Open → |
| Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court广州知识产权法院 | Guangzhou | Court | Guangzhou / selected Guangdong IP | Open → |
| Guangzhou Internet Court广州互联网法院 | Guangzhou | Court | Designated internet cases (Guangzhou) | Open → |
| Guangzhou Maritime Court广州海事法院 | Guangzhou | Court | Designated maritime and admiralty matters in South China | Open → |
| Hainan Free Trade Port Intellectual Property Court海南自由贸易港知识产权法院 | Haikou | Court | Hainan / designated IP and competition matters | Open → |
| Hangzhou Internet Court杭州互联网法院 | Hangzhou | Court | Designated internet cases (Hangzhou) | Open → |
| Intellectual Property Court of the Supreme People's Court最高人民法院知识产权法庭 | Beijing | Court | Nationwide appellate jurisdiction for designated technical IP matters | Open → |
| Shanghai Financial Court上海金融法院 | Shanghai | Court | Shanghai financial disputes (designated) | Open → |
| Shanghai Intellectual Property Court上海知识产权法院 | Shanghai | Court | Shanghai IP | Open → |
| Shanghai Maritime Court上海海事法院 | Shanghai | Court | Designated maritime and admiralty matters | Open → |
| Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China中华人民共和国最高人民法院 | Beijing | Court | Nationwide (PRC) | Open → |
| Supreme People's Procuratorate of the People's Republic of China中华人民共和国最高人民检察院 | Beijing | Procuratorate | Nationwide (PRC) | Open → |
Orientation
What determines the court route?
Geography
Where parties, conduct, property or other connecting factors sit can matter.
Subject matter
IP, maritime, internet, financial and other matters may follow specialist allocation rules.
Court level
Case type, amount and statutory allocation can affect the appropriate level.
Procedural posture
First instance, appeal, enforcement and administrative review are different routes.
City research