In a shocking revelation, lawyers in China discovered judges were remotely giving instructions on a case through a WeChat group, undermining the legal system. The incident was reported by liberal-leaning newspaper Southern Weekly, where a lawyer captured evidence of judicial officers discussing the case in a group chat. The Haixi intermediate court and the Tianjun county court were implicated in the scandal, prompting an investigation by authorities.
The lawyers involved called the police and reported the incident to higher judicial offices. They also requested the case to be heard in a different court due to the interference. The Haixi court, however, blamed the lawyer for disobedience and defended its actions as per legal protocols.
This incident sparked outrage among legal professionals, with many condemning the courts for compromising judicial independence. Critics highlighted the misuse of “key supervision” and expressed concerns about the erosion of legal norms. Such cases of judicial interference were deemed common, reflecting systemic issues within the Chinese legal system.
