The 4th International Conference on Future Rule of Law and Digital Law was held in Beijing on Dec 16. Jiang Ying, president of the Beijing Internet Court (BIC), attended the event upon invitation and gave a speech at a panel discussion session with eight other participants, including law school deans and presidents of local courts.

Focusing on digital rule of law and digital jurisprudence, Jiang's speech started with a few typical cases handled by the BIC to illustrate why a future-oriented approach is needed in the digital rule of law.

She said that as we enter into the digital age, judicature is faced with a series of new issues, such as the definition of subject and object, the expansion of the connotations of rights, and the identification of legal liabilities. When traditional theories encounter new application scenarios, only by adhering to a future-oriented judicial concept can we better encourage the application of new technologies and promote the development of new forms of business, she said, calling for constant attention to the value considerations from the national, social, and citizens' perspectives, as times changes.

Both the practice of digital rule of law and the theoretical research of digital jurisprudence need to resonate with the innovative transformation of digital technologies and industries, proactively adapt to the development trend of science and technology, and need to serve the governance of digital society and the healthy development of the digital economy from the strategic height of facing the future, moving towards the future and leading the future, she stressed.

Jiang's speech was closely combined with the BIC's latest practices in digital governance and frontline theories in digital jurisprudence, fully reflecting the BIC’s mission in promoting positive interactions between law schools and courts, promoting the integrated progress of the concept of digital rule of law and digital jurisprudence, and safeguarding the development of the digital economy.

The conference was hosted by the Law School of Renmin University of China and was attended by representatives from government agencies, judicial authorities, domestic and foreign research institutions and industry. The International Association of Digital Law was inaugurated at the event.