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In May 2026, an administrative penalty case involving the demolition of "illegal construction" involving more than 7,600 square meters of factory buildings ushered in a critical turning point in an intermediate people's court in Guangdong Province under the professional representation of lawyers Li Ziqi and Zhang Ting of Beijing Yingtong Law Firm. The court finally adopted the lawyer's core point of view and revoked the "Administrative Penalty Decision" issued by the administrative agency in accordance with the law on the grounds of "insufficient main evidence", allowing Taiwanese businessman Mr. Zhang to save the factory that has been operating for more than 20 years.

Problems left over from history, a piece of "illegal construction" puts companies in dire straits

Back in 2000, it was a time of investment boom. Mr. Zhang, a Taiwanese businessman, was full of enthusiasm and signed a "Land Allocation Agreement" with the local administrative agency, invested in the establishment of a jewelry company, and built factories and dormitories in an industrial zone from 2001 to 2003. Due to complex reasons such as policy changes and administrative personnel transfers at that time, the building that carried the company's development for more than 20 years has not been able to obtain a complete property ownership certificate.

In May 2025, a sudden "Administrative Penalty Decision" broke the company's tranquility. The administrative agency determined that the building had not obtained a construction project planning permit and was an "illegal construction" for which corrective measures could not be taken to eliminate the impact, and ordered Mr. Zhang to demolish the 18 buildings with a total area of ​​more than 7,600 square meters within a time limit. For a physical enterprise that has been operating for many years, demolishing the factory is tantamount to draining the bottom of the fire.

Lawyer Ying Ting accurately dismantles and uses "procedural justice" to solve "law enforcement flaws"

Faced with the crisis that his huge assets may disappear, Mr. Zhang quickly entrusted Beijing Yingting Law Firm to intervene. After an in-depth study of the case, attorneys Li Ziqi and Zhang Ting found that although the building did have historical problems with lack of formalities, the administrative agency's penalty decision contained major loopholes in the application of law and the determination of facts.

The legal team argued hard during the trial, pointing out that the building involved was built before 2003, but the administrative agency applied the Urban and Rural Planning Law, which was only implemented in 2008. This seriously violated the basic principle of "non-retroactivity of laws." More importantly, when the administrative agency concluded that "corrective measures cannot be taken," it failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove which planning indicators (such as spacing, setback red lines, etc.) the building violated, nor to prove what irreparable impact it had on the implementation of the plan.

The court's decision demonstrates the spirit of the rule of law and settles disputes over issues left over from history

After trial, the Intermediate Court held that although the defendant administrative agency had corresponding law enforcement authority, in this case, the evidence submitted by it could not prove the specific circumstances of the building involved in "violating building spacing and setback red lines," nor could it prove the specific impact the building had on the implementation of the plan. The court clearly pointed out that the administrative agency determined that the building involved in the case must be demolished based on a general review opinion."The main evidence is insufficient and the factual basis is insufficient.".

Based on the above reasons, the court made a first-instance judgment in May 2026 and revoked the "Administrative Penalty Decision" involved in the case in accordance with the law.

The victory in this case not only saved the priceless factory building for the parties, but also reflected the lawyer's adherence to legal principles in handling complex administrative disputes. With his profound legal skills, lawyer Ying Ting accurately grasped the common law enforcement problem of administrative agencies that "emphasis on entities and neglects procedures". Through rigorous evidence cross-examination, he successfully safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises and provided valuable judicial practice samples for solving similar issues left over from history. (Except for the attorney, the names of the parties and the companies involved in the case are pseudonyms in this article)

Lawyer in charge of this case

Beijing Yingting Law Firm Lawyer Li Ziqi, Lawyer Zhang Ting

Lawyer Li Ziqi, Master of Laws

Full-time lawyer at Beijing Yingting Law Firm

Business areas: land disputes, government-enterprise disputes, mining rights disputes, mineral resource overturning compensation, administrative compensation, administrative commitments, administrative agreement disputes, franchise disputes and other administrative litigation, etc.

Social positions: Member of Beijing Lawyers Association, member of Shaanxi Real Estate Law Research Association, member of China Law Society

Practical experience: Since getting involved in the field of administrative litigation, he has participated in the handling of many complex dispute cases and accumulated a profound theoretical foundation and practical experience. Use solid legal knowledge and theoretical literacy to study a series of legal issues in administrative litigation, and have accumulated rich experience in handling cases in mining disputes, housing and land disputes, agricultural land conversion disputes, illegal construction disputes, administrative agreements, administrative promises, land rights confirmation, land contracts, etc.

Lawyer Zhang Ting, Master of Laws

Partner, Beijing Yingting Law Firm

Professional administrative reconsideration lawyer in Beijing, member of the Administrative Reconsideration Law Professional Committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association

Business areas: Focus on administrative reconsideration, administrative litigation and dispute resolution of government-enterprise disputes, and is good at handling administrative legal affairs such as administrative agreements, administrative penalties, administrative compensation, and administrative compensation in the fields of land, mineral resources, etc.

We mainly provide legal services for administrative dispute resolution and government-enterprise disputes for large and medium-sized enterprises. Our business involves investment projects, land resumption, idle land disposal, closure and vacation, suppression of mineral resources, mining rights disputes, sea area use rights disputes and other difficult and complex matters. We are good at combining administrative law rules, natural resource management requirements and business operation needs to provide customers with comprehensive solutions that combine litigation and non-litigation.

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