According to the Law on the Organization of People's Court and other laws, trials of People's Courts take the following forms:

1. Sole Judge Court

This kind of court is presided over by one judge for trying simple cases. Legally speaking, these cases include:
• First-hearing criminal cases handled upon complaint and other minor criminal cases;
• Simple civil cases and cases involving economic disputes handled by grassroots courts and their detached tribunals;
• Cases tried using special procedures, except for cases involving voters' qualification or other complicated cases, which should be tried by a collegiate panel.

2. Collegiate Panels

Collegiate panels consist of at least three judges or a combination of judges and People's Assessors. First-hearing criminal and civil cases are generally tried by a collegiate panel except for those simple cases for which a sole judge is sufficient. First-hearing administrative cases, without exception, are handled by a collegiate panel; second-hearing, reexamined cases and death penalty verification cases are handled by a collegiate panel.

A collegiate panel, as a basic form of the People's Court, is not inflexible in its composition; rather, its members are appointed on a case-by-case basis. The president or the presiding judge designates a judge to be the chief judge. When the president of the court or the presiding judge of a tribunal themselves attend a case, they serve as the chief judge concurrently. When assessing a case, the collegiate panel should follow the principle of the minority submitting to the opinions of the majority when disagreement arises. The opinions of the minority, however, should be recorded in the court log with signatures of members of the panel.

3. Judicial Committee

According to the Law on the Organization of People's Courts, courts at all levels set up a Judicial Committee, the members of which are nominated by the president for appointment by the People's Congress at the same level. The Judicial Committee is presided over by the president of the court and its responsibilities include:
• Deliberate on major, complicated cases;
• Summarize judicial practices;
• Discuss other judicial issues.