First step taken to compile a civil code

The Supreme People's Court has formed a group to start compiling the nation's first civil code following repeated calls for the rule of law.

Xi Xiaoming, the court's vice-president, who was appointed deputy head of the group on Tuesday, said the civil code will serve as an important basis of judicial judgment, and the group will solicit opinions from a cross section of the public and legal professionals.

"The civil code will be the code of conduct for society and the general public, and it will provide the norms for trials," Xi said. "So we need to make sure the civil code is codified in a scientific way without any flaws in its logic, and it should be applicable in trials."