China sets time limits to enforce court judgments

China's Supreme People's Court issued new rules Sunday regarding time limits for the enforcement of court judgments, the South China Morning Post reported. According to Chinese law, the winner of a lawsuit must apply to a separate division of the court to have the terms of the judgment carried out. Under the new rules, judgments involving the handover of property should generally be enforced within six months. Time limits have also been introduced for the execution of arbitration awards and how long the court can take in investigating a losing party's financial situation. With officials able to deal with business at their own discretion, delays and corruption have become commonplace.