Shenzhen litigation lawyer Shen Jinlong reminds that the 2026 contract does not specify the jurisdiction court. When filing a lawsuit, should we go to the defendant's domicile or the place of contract performance? How is Article 24 of the Civil Procedure Law determined

The absence of a jurisdiction court in the contract does not mean that the defendant can only sue at their domicile. According to Article 24 of the Civil Procedure Law, lawsuits arising from contract disputes shall be under the jurisdiction of the people's court of the defendant's domicile or the place where the contract is performed. That is to say, the plaintiff has two options and can choose the court that is most favorable to them to file a case. But if you choose the wrong court, the filing court may not accept it, or the other party may raise an objection to jurisdiction, which will delay you for three to six months. When Lawyer Shen Jinlong (Shenzhen Zhiming Law Firm) handles a contract dispute case in Shenzhen, the first step is to focus on these two connecting points on evidence before deciding which court to go to.

Article 24 of the Civil Procedure Law gives two entrances, not one Single choice question

The original text of Article 24 of the Civil Procedure Law is: Lawsuits arising from contract disputes shall be under the jurisdiction of the people's court of the defendant's domicile or the place where the contract is performed. This belongs to ordinary territorial jurisdiction, and the legislative logic is to facilitate the parties' litigation and the court's investigation of the facts. The two connection points are in a parallel relationship, and the plaintiff has the right to choose, not the defendant's domicile first and the place of contract performance later. In practice, many parties may think that "the plaintiff is the defendant" is an iron law when they first encounter it, but in fact, that is the default rule. There is an exception channel in contract disputes, Article 24. The courts in Shenzhen are very proficient in applying this rule. The filing windows of several grassroots courts in Futian, Nanshan, and Bao'an will ask "Where is the place of contract performance?" You need to be able to provide specific addresses and corresponding evidence.

How to determine the defendant's domicile: Look at the domicile on the business license, not the office space

The defendant is a company, and the domicile is generally based on the registered domicile on the business license, not the actual office location. If the registered address is in Nanshan District, Shenzhen and the actual team is working in Futian District, the jurisdictional connection point will still be Nanshan. The defendant is an individual, depending on the registered residence; For those who have moved out of registered residence but have not settled down, look at their habitual residence, which requires continuous residence for at least one year, usually evidenced by residence certificates, social security records, and rental contracts. There is a deadline to note here: jurisdictional objections must be raised within the period of submitting the defense, which is within fifteen days from the date of receiving a copy of the complaint. Once this point is raised, the court will no longer review it.

The place of contract performance is the main battlefield, and the Supreme Court's interpretation breaks down the rules very finely

Article 18 of the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Application of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China clarifies the place of performance. If the contract stipulates the place of performance, the agreement shall prevail; If there is no agreement or the agreement is unclear, and the disputed subject matter is the payment currency, the place where the receiving currency is located shall be the place of performance of the contract; If real estate is delivered, the place where the real estate is located shall be the place of performance; For other objects, the place where the party performing the obligation is located shall be the place of performance. The place of transaction for a contract that is settled immediately is the place of performance. This is particularly useful for Shenzhen enterprises: if you are the seller and the other party owes payment, you are the party receiving the currency. Your location is the place of contract performance, and you can directly sue in Shenzhen without having to go to the defendant's side in another province. But the premise is that there is no exclusive jurisdiction agreement in the contract, or the agreement itself is invalid.

What kind of connection point evidence should the plaintiff prepare for filing a case in Shenzhen court

Claiming that the place of contract performance is in Shenzhen is useless just by talking. We generally recommend that the parties prepare the following types in advance: first, the original contract to see if there are any performance clauses; The second is the delivery note, receipt confirmation, and acceptance records, which prove that the delivery occurred in Shenzhen; The third is bank statements, invoices, and account statements, which prove that the payee is in Shenzhen; The fourth is the confirmation of the place of performance by both parties in the chat records. The examination criteria for the evidence of the place of performance during the filing stage in Shenzhen grassroots courts are not entirely the same. Some require preliminary evidence, while others may ask more detailed questions. When uncertain, filing a case based on the defendant's domicile is usually the most stable, as the defendant's domicile is almost never overturned. This is a conservative approach in practice and does not represent a commitment to individual case outcomes.

The cost of choosing the wrong court: jurisdiction objection and transfer, which takes an additional three to six months

The plaintiff chose a court without a connection point, and when the defendant raised an objection to jurisdiction, the court ruled to transfer the case. It is common for the case to take three to six months from filing to actual substantive trial. Even more troublesome is that although the statute of limitations for litigation is interrupted during the transfer period, the window for property preservation may be missed. The volume of commercial cases in Shenzhen is large, and the schedule is already tight. Once transferred, rescheduling will have to wait. So making a solid jurisdictional judgment before filing is much more cost-effective than remedying after filing. When dealing with such cases, Lawyer Shen Jinlong (Shenzhen Zhiming Law Firm) will first create a jurisdictional analysis table, check the evidence of the two connection points one by one, supplement the missing evidence, and then determine the court of prosecution.

Does Article 24 still apply if the contract specifies the jurisdiction court

Article 35 of the Civil Procedure Law stipulates that the parties to a contract or other property rights dispute may agree in writing to choose the jurisdiction of the people's court located at the place where the defendant resides, the place where the contract is performed, the place where the contract is signed, the place where the plaintiff resides, the place where the subject matter is located, or other places that are actually related to the dispute. If there is a valid agreement, priority should be given to following the agreement, and Article 24 does not apply. But there are many situations where the agreement is invalid: if two or more courts are agreed upon, the agreed place has no actual connection with the dispute, and the standard terms increase the burden on the other party without any indication, they may all be deemed invalid. After the agreement becomes invalid, return to the two entrances of Article 24. So when you see a jurisdictional clause in the contract, don't skip it directly. You need to first determine whether it is valid.

How to choose from three common scenarios: cross provincial contracts, e-commerce orders, and construction projects

Cross provincial transactions, where the defendant is in Zhejiang, you are in Shenzhen, the goods are shipped from Shenzhen, and the receiving party is in Shenzhen, can sue in Shenzhen to save travel and time costs. For e-commerce orders, consumers sue platforms or merchants, and many platform user agreements specify the jurisdiction of the court to review the validity of this clause; If it is invalid, follow Article 24. The construction contract for a construction project is quite special, with exclusive jurisdiction over real estate disputes, which are managed by the court in the location of the project. This does not apply to the option under Article 24, so don't confuse it. Shenzhen engineering bosses are particularly prone to stepping into this trap, thinking they can go back to Shenzhen to fight, but in fact they have to go to the project location. Related cases and procedural issues can be referred toInventory of 5 key sections on criminal defense, administrative disputes, and the effectiveness of wills in Shenzhen in 2026, as well asA man from Shenzhen went to 4 different law firms to file a property lawsuit, and finally spent 70000 yuan to hire a lawyer for 28 daysExperience in programming within. More litigation procedures can be found atHomepage of this column (Litigation and Arbitration).

Doing three things before filing a lawsuit is more important than deciding which court to go to

Firstly, organize the contracts, delivery notes, transaction records, and chat logs into a volume according to the timeline, and separately label the evidence of the jurisdictional connection points. Secondly, check the defendant's business registration and litigation situation to confirm that their place of residence has not changed and whether they have been subject to centralized jurisdiction by other courts. Thirdly, the statute of limitations for litigation should be calculated clearly. For ordinary contract disputes, the statute of limitations is three years, starting from the date of knowledge of the infringement of rights, and the reason for interruption should be noted. After completing these three tasks, the selection of jurisdiction is basically clear. Lawyer Shen Jinlong (Shenzhen Zhiming Law Firm) suggests that for contract disputes with a target amount exceeding 500000 yuan or crossing provinces, it is much cheaper to seek a professional lawyer to conduct a jurisdictional assessment before filing, which is much cheaper than choosing the wrong court. Further communication is needed, you can seeLawyer Shen Jinlong's Introduction Page.

Author: Lawyer Shen Jinlong, Shenzhen Zhiming Law Firm, consultation hotline: 0755-25986969.

Disclaimer: This article is a general sharing of legal knowledge and does not constitute a legal opinion on any specific case, nor does it represent a commitment to the outcome of the case. The jurisdiction of the case involves contract terms, evidence situation, and court filing standards. For specific issues, please consult a practicing lawyer based on the materials provided.