Examination and Improvement Pathways of Civil Online Litigation Rules

In recent years, with the rapid development of Internet technology and the continuous advancement of judicial informatization, civil online litigation rules have gradually become an important topic in China’s judicial practice. On the basis of systematically reviewing the institutional value of civil online litigation rules, this paper selects two typical cases-the online hearing of a marriage dispute by the Jinxi County People’s Court and the video hearing of a financial loan dispute by the Wuzhishan City People’s Court-to analyze the application methods and practical effects of online litigation rules in specific judicial operations. The study finds that civil online litigation demonstrates clear advantages in improving litigation efficiency and reducing litigants’ costs; however, certain deficiencies remain. In response to these issues, this paper proposes corresponding improvement pathways from the following aspects: improving shared network infrastructure platforms, clarifying the scope of application of online litigation and standardizing procedural operations, strengthening the rule awareness of litigation participants and judicial personnel, reinforcing network technology and data security safeguards, and optimizing judicial procedures outside online court hearings. It is hoped that these suggestions will provide reference for promoting the standardized development and effective implementation of civil online litigation rules.