On People's Assessor System

The system of people's assessor is the system that judicial organs absorb non-professional judges as assessor to participate in criminal, civil and administrative trials. Decision on Improvement of People's Assessor System was adopted by the 11th Meeting of Standing Committee of National People's Congress on Aug. 28th, 2004, which established that people's assessor system is one of the most important reform that China should persist during the course of judicial reform and a legal system that fully reflects judicial democracy of socialism and people's supervision on trials.Jury system was originated from ancient Greece. Origin of jury system in modern times was Britain's Great Charter in 1215. With the spread of western culture, jury system has being developed for nearly a hundred year. Sources of people's assessor system in China were legal regulations of revolutionary bases in Revolutionary War Period and civil procedural theories and judicial practice of former Soviet Union. Over 50 years since the foundation of People's Republic of China, people's assessor system had been neglected and attached importance for many times. It plays a more and more important role during the trial in people's court.With the deepening of judicial practice, defects of people's assessor are being exposed. Lacking of constitutional support, implementation and safeguarding measures, exertion of advantages of people's assessor system is obstructed. In order to standardize and systemize it, people's assessor system with characteristics of China should not only study jury system in western countries, but also take consideration of substantial value of justice and sense into assessing and realizing procedural valve of democracy and participation reflected due to abroad representation. In specific, related questions of people's assessor system including qualification, responsibility, management, supervision and public summons, should be legislatively cleared. Starting from theories and legal practice, this article clears up the current status of people's assessor system in China, and proposes suggestions for its further improvement in expectation of availing theoretical research and judicial development of people's assessor system.