WeChat messages to be used as evidence in court

According to a judicial interpretation by the Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China, online chat logs, text messages, e-mails and personal micro blogs as well as other digital messages can be used as evidence for civil cases from Feb 4, 2015.

The Supreme People's Court issued a judicial interpretation on Feb 4, 2015 consisting of 23 chapters, and 552 items in total. It covers a wide range of civil cases in detail.

According to the 63rd item in chapter 6, statements of parties, documentary evidence, material evidence, digital evidence, witness testimonies, expert opinions and records of inquests can all be used as evidence in civil cases. Digital evidence, including online chat logs, text messages, e-mails and personal Weibo. Additionally, sound recordings and videos are also regarded as proper evidence.

The new interpretation came into effect on Feb 4, 2015.