First batch of judge assistants promoted

The first batch of judges promoted from the position of judge assistants will assume office soon, the Shanghai High People's Court said on Monday.

The 160 new judges will start their careers in district courts in the city from the end of this year after completing interviews and qualification investigations. Almost 300 applicants completed a written test on the weekend.

"Those whose spouses are lawyers or judicial auditors can only become judges if their spouses leave their positions in order to protect court impartiality," Zhang Xiaoli, director of the general political department of the court, said.

Six years ago, the Supreme People's Court proposed the idea of replacing the position of court clerk, which most judges started out as, with the role of judge assistants. The move was designed to build a more professional and efficient judicial team and reduce the burden for judges.

Shanghai's first batch of judge assistants, including fresh law graduates and those who had worked in courts as court clerks or junior judges for years, began five years ago. There are now more than 1,900 judge assistants working in the system.

"The ultimate goal for judge assistants is to become judges, so we won't recruit those who aim to do administrative work anymore," Zhang said.

He said court clerks' main responsibilities include previewing case records before court hearings, organizing the two sides involved in a case for mediation before a trial or evidence exchange, and drafting court decisions in some simple cases, which is very different from what court clerks used to do – delivering indictment documents and taking records of trials.