To strengthen the management of expert witnesses and forensic institutions, meet the needs of judicial authorities as well as citizens and organizations in conducting litigation, and ensure the smooth progress of litigation activities, the following decision is hereby made:

1. Forensic examination refers to the activity in which an expert, using scientific technology or specialized knowledge, identifies and evaluates specialized issues involved in legal proceedings and provides an expert opinion.

II. The State shall implement a registration and management system for appraisers and appraisal institutions engaged in the following forensic appraisal services:

(1) Forensic identification;

(2) Physical evidence examination;

(3) Audio-visual evidence examination;

(4) Other forensic matters that, based on litigation needs, are determined by the judicial administration department of the State Council in consultation with the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate to be subject to registration and management for both forensic experts and forensic institutions.

If the law has separate provisions regarding the management of expert witnesses and forensic institutions for the matters specified in the preceding paragraph, those provisions shall prevail.

3. The judicial administration department of the State Council is responsible for the registration and management of forensic experts and forensic institutions nationwide. The judicial administration departments of provincial-level people's governments shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Decision, be responsible for the registration of forensic experts and forensic institutions, the preparation of rosters, and the publication of such information.

4. Individuals who meet any one of the following conditions may apply for registration to engage in forensic examination services:

(1) Possess a senior professional and technical title relevant to the forensic science services being applied for;

(2) Possess professional qualifications relevant to the forensic science services being applied for, or hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field from a higher education institution, and have more than five years of experience in a related field.

(3) Possess more than ten years of work experience relevant to the forensic science services being applied for, and demonstrate strong professional skills.

Individuals who have been criminally punished for intentional crimes or crimes committed through official negligence, who have been dismissed from public office, or whose certification as forensic experts has been revoked, shall not engage in forensic examination services.

V. A legal person or other organization applying to engage in forensic examination services shall meet the following conditions:

(1) Has a clearly defined scope of business;

(2) Possess the instruments and equipment necessary for conducting forensic examinations within the scope of business activities;

(3) Possess testing laboratories that have undergone legal metrological certification or laboratory accreditation and are necessary for conducting forensic examinations within the scope of business activities;

(4) Each forensic appraisal service shall have three or more appraisers.

6. Individuals, legal entities, or other organizations applying to engage in forensic appraisal services shall be reviewed by the judicial administration department of the provincial-level people's government. Those meeting the required conditions will be registered, included in the roster of appraisers and appraisal institutions, and publicly announced.

The judicial administrative department of the provincial people's government shall, based on the registration status of additions and cancellations of expert witnesses or forensic institutions, periodically update and publicly announce the roster of expert witnesses and forensic institutions it has compiled.

7. Identification institutions established by investigative authorities according to the needs of their investigative work may not accept commissions from the public to engage in forensic identification services.

People's courts and judicial administrative departments shall not establish forensic institutions.

8. The various forensic institutions have no hierarchical relationship with one another; forensic institutions, when accepting commissions to conduct forensic examinations, are not restricted by geographical boundaries.

The expert witness shall engage in forensic examination services at a single forensic institution.

9. In litigation, if a dispute arises regarding the matters for expert appraisal specified in Article 2 of this Decision and an expert appraisal is required, the appraisal shall be commissioned to an expert listed on the roster of experts. Experts engaged in forensic appraisal services shall have their commissions uniformly accepted by the appraisal institutions to which they belong.

Experts and expert institutions shall conduct forensic examination services within the scope of business indicated in the register of experts and expert institutions.

The expert witness shall recuse themselves in accordance with the provisions of the litigation laws.

10. Judicial appraisals shall be conducted under a system of accountability by the appraiser. The appraiser shall conduct the appraisal independently, take full responsibility for the appraisal opinion, and sign or affix a seal to the appraisal report. In cases where multiple persons participate in the appraisal and hold differing opinions on the appraisal conclusion, such differences shall be clearly noted.

11. In litigation, if a party objects to the expert opinion, the expert shall appear in court to testify upon being duly notified by the people’s court in accordance with the law.

12. Experts and expert institutions engaged in forensic appraisal services shall comply with laws and regulations, uphold professional ethics and professional discipline, respect science, and adhere to technical operating standards.

13. If an expert witness or an expert appraisal institution violates the provisions of this Decision, the judicial administration department of the provincial-level people's government shall issue a warning and order it to make corrections.

If an expert witness or an expert appraisal agency falls under any of the following circumstances, the judicial administration department of the provincial people’s government shall impose a penalty of suspension from engaging in forensic appraisal services for a period of more than three months but less than one year; in cases of serious violations, their registration shall be revoked:

(1) Causing significant damage to the legitimate rights and interests of the party concerned due to serious irresponsibility;

(2) Providing false supporting documents or employing other fraudulent means to obtain registration;

(3) Refusing to appear in court and testify after being duly notified by the People’s Court in accordance with the law;

(4) Other circumstances prescribed by laws and administrative regulations.

If an expert intentionally provides a false appraisal that constitutes a crime, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law; if the act does not yet constitute a crime, punishment shall be imposed in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

14. In the registration and management of expert witnesses and forensic institutions, the judicial administration department shall strictly adhere to the law and actively promote the standardization and legalization of forensic examinations. Those directly responsible for serious consequences resulting from abuse of power or dereliction of duty shall be held legally accountable.

15. The fee items and fee standards for forensic appraisals shall be determined by the judicial administration department of the State Council in consultation with the price administration authority of the State Council.

16. The specific measures for registering, compiling lists of, and announcing experts and expert institutions shall be formulated by the judicial administration department of the State Council and submitted to the State Council for approval.

17. The meanings of the terms used in this decision are as follows:

(1) Forensic examinations, including forensic pathology examination, forensic clinical examination, forensic psychiatric examination, forensic evidence examination, and forensic toxicology examination.

(2) Physical evidence examination, including document examination, trace examination, and microanalysis.

(3) Audio-visual evidence examination includes the authentication of the authenticity and integrity of sound and image information recorded on media such as audio tapes, video tapes, disks, optical discs, and images, as well as the identification of the nature or identity of the speech, human bodies, and objects depicted in the recorded sounds and images.

18. This decision shall take effect as of October 1, 2005.