Jiang Qibo, Director of the SPC’s Research Office, speaks at the press conference on Sept 5. (Photo/court.gov.cn)

The Supreme People's Court (SPC) and the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) jointly issued a judicial interpretation on the application of law to criminal cases of exam cheating at a press conference held at the SPC on Sept 3.

The press conference was hosted by SPC's spokesperson Li Guangning and attended by Jiang Qibo, head of SPC's Research Office as well as officials from the SPP, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Public Securities and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

The interpretation specifies such issues as conviction and sentencing standards for crimes of organizing exam cheating, illegally selling or offering tests or answers and ghost writing, and clarifies the application of law to several issues.

According to data released during the press conference, Chinese courts heard 1,734 criminal cases involving exam cheating and convicted 3,724 people between the implementation of the Ninth Amendment to the Criminal Law and the end of July.