CHINA plans to start holding “jury trials” next year under legal reforms designed to cope with the wave of corruption and corporate crime spawned by rampant economic growth.

However, the jurors who will start sitting next May will not have the independence associated with those in Western courts. They will act more like magistrates, having powers equal to judges, and will be elected for five-year terms. They will also need at least two years’ university education.

The measures were announced by the Supreme People’s Court, the highest in China, after a meeting last week on improving the legal system. There will also be a 10 per cent increase in the number of judges, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

There are currently 24,000 “people’s jurors”, who are picked by courts or approved by local authorities, but they function largely as figureheads.

Xinhua said the Government hoped to “empower jurors in the hope of enhancing its legal network”. Xiao Yang, president of the Supreme People’s Court, promised action to fight corruption, which is a big domestic political issue. He also promised measures to combat piracy and theft of intellectual property, a common bugbear for foreign firms trying to operate in China.

In a speech, Mr Xiao acknowledged that China was entering a difficult adjustment period because of rapid economic growth.

The intention would be to “strike hard” against serious criminals and crack down on financial and economic fraud, intellectual property infringement, human rights violations in the judicial field and abuse of power by officials, he said.

The number of court cases related to state-owned company reforms, salaries in arrears and illegal land acquisitions had risen dramatically, Mr Xiao said.

“During such a period, the country needs improvement in its judicial capacity,” he said.

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