Unified law exam introduced
1 March 2002
Justice minister Zhang Fusen has announced the introduction of a unified law examination. It is intended to improve professional and educational standards in a system where only half the 110,000 lawyers working in China hold law degrees. The first examination will be held at the end of this month. By mid-February, more than 360,000 future lawyers, prosecutors and judges had applied to take the exam.
The new system should help the legal profession compete in the legal services market after China's entry into the WTO.