New Rules on Evidence During Civil Litigation

The new rules on evidence during civil litigation issued by the Supreme Court became effective as of April 1, 2002. The rules set out a few new principles.

1. Burden of proof. The parties to a lawsuit, either the plaintiff or the defendant, should bear the burden of proof, i.e. He/it should provide evidence to support his/its claim. The party failure to prove his/its claim by evidence should take the consequences of losing the suit. However, the burden of proof shall be shifted to the defendant in the case of infringement suit where the suit concerns a process paten for a new product, product liability or medical dispute, etc.
2. Time limit for submitting evidence. The parties to a lawsuit must provide evidence to the court within a time limit specified by the court. The time limit should not be less than 30 days. Failure to submit evidence within the specified time limit waives the party's right to prove. In addition, evidence submitted after the time limit will not be considered in determining the case.
3. Evidence exchange before court hearing. Before court hearing, the parties may request for and the court may, on its own initiative, hold an evidence exchange. The date of evidence exchange is taken as the expiration of the time limit for providing evidence. No evidence will be accepted by the court after the exchange unless a party finds out a new evidence rebutting the other party's evidence.
4. Cross-examination of the evidence. Any evidence submitted by a party should be under query of the other party and be cross-examined during the court hearing proceedings. Evidence without going through the procedure shall not be considered in determining the case.

Video and audio recordings as evidence. Video and audio recordings obtained by legal means will be accepted as evidence and can be used in determining a case.