On December 1, the Supreme People's Court (SPC) issued the Interpretation on Several Issues Concerning the Application of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Foreign-Related Civil Relations (II) (the "Interpretation"), effective from January 1, 2024.

The Interpretation mainly involves: (1) clarifying the responsibility for ascertaining foreign laws; (2) expanding the methods to ascertain foreign laws; (3) clarifying the procedures and provision forms of foreign laws; (4) clarifying the procedures for reviewing and identifying foreign laws; (5) clarifying the standards for review and identification of foreign laws; (6) stipulating that the judicial document must contain the process of ascertaining foreign laws; (7) specifying the principles for handling ascertainment costs; and (8) clarifying the rules for reference and application in the ascertainment of Hong Kong and Macao laws. Among others, the Interpretation stipulates how to deal with the ascertainment costs which are included in the litigation request of the parties. If the parties agree on the assumption of ascertainment costs, the parties' autonomy of will shall be fully respected and the matter shall be handled in accordance with their agreement; if there is no agreement, the court shall, as appropriate, support reasonable ascertainment costs based on the claims of the parties, the ascertainment status, and the specific circumstances of the case.

(Source: Supreme People's Court of China)