The rise indicates not only the city's booming economy, but also the public's increased legal awareness, said Zheng Changyu, director of the notarization division of the Shanghai Administration of Justice.

He said with increasing exchanges in foreign trade and civil affairs involving foreign matters, businesses and citizens were becoming more aware of having their interests protected by law.

In 2001 alone, Shanghai notaries dealt with more than 510,000 such cases, with nearly half involving foreign matters. The majority of cases related to foreign matters concerned studying or working overseas, visiting relatives and traveling overseas, and housing deals with foreigners.

Domestic cases mainly dealt with buying apartments via a loan, mortgages, sponsorship, and wills and inheritances.

Notaries provide a lawful means to protect the legal rights and interests of citizens, companies and organizations without legal person status.

Professor Wang Quandi of the law school at Fudan University said that a notary's services in China were more effective than an attorney's and therefore widely popular.

The use of notaries did not resume in Shanghai until 1980. More than 350 professional staff currently work in a dozen offices.

It now takes only a couple of days to complete the procedure rather than one month as in the past.

(China Daily July 6, 2002)