The new Integrated Resolution Mechanism for Road Traffic Accident Disputes in Zhongshan was officially implemented on August 1. From now on, any party involved in a traffic accident must accept mediation before filing a lawsuit. Otherwise, the court shall not accept the traffic accident case without prior mediation.

As of now, the Zhongshan Court Litigation Service Center and the Zhongshan Second People's Court have established the "Zhongshan Mediation Office for Road Traffic Accident Disputes", and each traffic police group has set up a "Zhongshan Mediation Station for Road Traffic Accident Disputes".

If the parties concerned have a claim dispute after the accident, they shall, in accordance with the guidelines, go to the mediation office or mediation station in the jurisdiction where the accident occurred to settle the dispute.

In case of any injury during a traffic accident, forensic identification shall serve as a major means to determine the state of injury and the amount claimed. As prescribed in the dispute settlement mechanism, for any case involved in no forensic identification, parties concerned may apply for judicial confirmation after a successful mediation. The court shall issue a civil ruling to confirm the legal effect of the mediation agreement, thus avoiding any litigation exhaustion incurred by the parties concerned.

According to the Zhongshan Intermediate People's Court, unless the case is unavailable to mediation (for example, the party responsible for the accident flees from the scene), if any of the parties concerned does not attend the mediation without any valid reason or fails to respect the mediation agreement or deliberately delays the lawsuit, the People's Court shall, at its discretion, increase the litigation cost for such party accordingly.

In case one party does not accept the mediation plan proposed by the mediation organization in the course of the mediation, if the court's verdict is similar to the mediation plan in the subsequent lawsuit, the party not accepting the mediation plan shall bear the litigation cost of the case and the reasonable lawyers' fees of the other party.