China sees first decline in noncompliance with court rulings in a decade

The number of individuals and organizations that failed to comply with Chinese court verdicts declined in 2024 for the first time in a decade, China's top court said on Monday.

Courts across the country have prioritized the enforcement of rulings, and China has launched a reform to improve efficiency in handling major, complex cases or long-standing unresolved verdicts. The reform strengthens judicial supervision and enhances cooperation between courts to safeguard litigants' rights and bolster judicial credibility, the Supreme People's Court said.

Since its implementation a year and a half ago, the reform has led to significant progress. By the end of March, nearly 300,000 cases had been resolved, with a total of about 160 billion yuan ($22.6 billion) enforced, the court said.

Individuals, businesses or organizations that fail to comply with court rulings—such as debtors who do not repay adjudicated amounts—are placed on a dishonest list, with their names and identification details made public online. The top court said the measure is intended to push defendants to fulfill court rulings and contribute to China's social credit system.

The number of individuals restoring their credit by complying with verdicts has surpassed the number of new entries on the list, which the court said helps stimulate market vitality and promote steady economic growth.

The top court said 2024 marked the first decline in the number of people on the dishonest list in a decade. In the first quarter of this year, the number of new entries dropped 9 percent year-on-year.

As it pushes for faster enforcement of rulings, the court has also instructed judges to further regulate their conduct when urging compliance to ensure enforcement quality.

Over the past decade, China has strengthened its credit system. In addition to making defaulters' information public, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate issued a judicial interpretation in 2024 clarifying criminal penalties for those who refuse to comply with court rulings, in an effort to better protect the rights of those who win lawsuits.