I. Introduction

On December 25, 2017, the Supreme People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) convened the National Court Work Conference on Bankruptcy Trials in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Representatives from higher people’s courts of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities attended the conference and reached a consensus on major issues concerning bankruptcy trials. Minutes of the conference were issued by the Supreme People’s Court on March 4, 2018, which have become authoritative guidelines for bankruptcy judicial practice in China.

The economic reform in China demands the improvement of bankruptcy law. Under the pressure of economic downturn, China launched economic reform to reduce the excess capacity and shut down “zombie enterprises”, which persistently incurred financial losses but continued to operate in the market. The crackdown of zombie firms consequently increased the amount and complexity of bankruptcy cases in Chinese courts. The Enterprise Bankruptcy Law, which was promulgated a decade ago, could no longer meet the demands of judicial practice. Therefore, the Supreme Court held a national conference and addressed prominent problems in bankruptcy trials. An analysis of several key provisions detailed within the minutes of the conference is provided below.