On December 5, the Supreme People’s Court released the report “Judicial Protection of Biodiversity in China” and 15 typical cases on judicial protection of biodiversity.

According to the report, since 2013, courts at all levels have concluded a total of 182,000 first instance cases involving biodiversity protection. In addition, the Supreme Court has issued 15 judicial policy documents, formulated 21 judicial interpretations, including the “Interpretation of Several Issues on the Application of Law in Hearing Civil Disputes over Forest Resources”, and issued 26 guiding cases on environmental resources, including “biodiversity protection”, and 280 typical cases in 26 batches, enriching the rules of green adjudication and strengthening the value orientation of biodiversity protection. A total of 2,426 specialised agencies or organisations for environmental resources adjudication were established by courts nationwide. The courts have implemented a “three-in-one” system for the adjudication of criminal, civil and administrative environmental resources cases.