A center offering both litigation and non-litigation services opens in Binhu district, Wuxi. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A district-level center offering both litigation and non-litigation services opened to public in Wuxi's Binhu district on Oct 29, 2020.

The center, which is the first of its kind in Jiangsu province, combines non-litigation and litigation methods to resolve conflicts and disputes in a fair, efficient, easy and cost-effective manner.

The center features both the non-litigation functions of conciliation, notarization, reconsideration, verdict and legal aid, and the litigation functions of case filing, judgment and judicial confirmation.

The center also highlights the application of block chain technological innovation in the storage of evidence. It has integrated block chain technology into the district's mediation system, enabling resource sharing among different mediation organizations to enhance the efficiency of dispute settlement.

Furthermore, the center has built an online platform for non-litigation dispute settlement to reduce the number of court cases.

The center, with a total investment of 6 million yuan ($894,000), covers a usable area of over 600 square meters, according to Zhou Junpeng, deputy head of Binhu district. It started construction in 2019 and was listed as one of the district's livelihood projects in 2020.