Receiving a document headed 刑事簡易判決 means a summary criminal judgment has been issued, even if no ordinary trial hearing took place. Its service can start the twenty-day appeal period under Code of Criminal Procedure Article 349. Waiting for an English translation does not create a new starting date; an appeal may also be filed after pronouncement and before service.
Check the document title. 起訴書 is a prosecutor’s indictment. 刑事判決 is a criminal judgment, while 刑事簡易判決 identifies a summary criminal judgment. Keep the envelope. The service record can matter as much as the date printed on the decision.
An indictment and a judgment require different responses
A prosecutor brings a public prosecution by submitting an indictment to the competent court under Article 264. It states the alleged facts, evidence and legal provisions. An indictment is an accusation. It does not itself impose a sentence or trigger Article 349’s judgment-appeal period.
Court papers may also include a hearing summons. Check its date separately. Give defense counsel the complete indictment, every hearing notice and the material you say contradicts the accusation, including original messages or payment records. Tell the court early if you need English interpretation. Arranging a translation privately does not change the attendance date on a summons.
Was there no trial hearing before the conviction arrived? That can happen through the summary procedure. Under Article 449, a first-instance court may issue a summary judgment on the prosecutor’s application when an investigation-stage confession or other existing evidence is sufficient to establish the offense. It must question the defendant before sentencing where necessary. The article limits the available sentences, but a summary judgment is still a court judgment.
Where the appeal goes
An appeal document is submitted to the court that delivered the judgment under Article 350, even though another court or panel will decide it and must be identified from the procedure used.
The appellate destination depends on the procedure:
| Judgment received | Ordinary appellate destination |
|---|---|
| First-instance district-court judgment in an ordinary criminal proceeding | The competent High Court |
| Summary criminal judgment | The competent district court’s collegiate panel acting as the second instance |
Article 361 governs the first route and requires concrete appeal reasons. Its provision for supplementing reasons after the appeal period has expired does not extend the time for filing the appeal itself. Article 455-1 governs summary appeals and expressly excludes Article 361 from the provisions it incorporates. Do not use the ordinary route’s supplementary-reasons timetable for a summary judgment.
Some judgments cannot be appealed. Article 455-1 excludes a sentencing judgment made in accordance with the defendant’s request under Article 451-1. If you previously agreed to a requested sentencing outcome, provide that record to counsel. The agreement’s procedural basis matters.
Service, translation and the actual filing
Article 454 requires a summary judgment to explain the twenty-day appeal right unless appeal is unavailable. Read that notice alongside the judgment’s operative part, which states the conviction, sentence and other orders.
Service can require legal analysis when a document was delivered to someone else or deposited for collection. A scan forwarded by a landlord after your return to the United States may arrive later than the legally effective service. Ask counsel to check the service record, applicable calculation rules and any allowed travel period. Do not calculate solely from the day you first opened the email.
For the appeal, identify the judgment and case number, the portion challenged and the reasons. Explain how an asserted factual or legal error affects the outcome. A discrepancy in a translated phrase should be compared with the original Chinese passage before it becomes an appeal ground. Arrange filing early enough to confirm receipt by the original court.
A victim’s route is different
In a public prosecution, a complainant or victim who disagrees with the judgment may submit reasons asking the prosecutor to appeal under Article 344. That request does not itself constitute the defendant’s kind of appeal, and it does not guarantee that the prosecutor will appeal.
A prosecutor’s refusal to bring charges uses the separate non-prosecution reconsideration procedure. For a court judgment, the practical file is the full decision, its service evidence, any previous sentencing agreement and the particular findings you dispute.
Official sources
- Code of Criminal Procedure Article 349
- Article 264
- Article 449
- Article 350
- Article 361
- Article 455-1
- Article 454
- Article 344
Checked: October 8, 2026. Chinese statutory text controls.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I receive a Taiwan criminal conviction without an ordinary trial hearing?
- Yes. Article 449 permits summary judgment in defined circumstances, with questioning before sentencing where necessary. The document remains a criminal judgment; check its appeal notice immediately.
- Do I send a summary-judgment appeal to the High Court?
- Submit the appeal to the original court. Under Article 455-1, a summary judgment is generally reviewed by a district-court collegiate panel acting as the second instance, subject to the statutory bar for certain Article 451-1 sentencing judgments.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice on any individual matter.
