E. Local Laws and Regulations: Currently, there is no authoritative all-in-one source for all local laws and regulations in China, and these local laws and regulations are each promulgated by their own provincial People`s Congress. In terms of civil and commercial law, China has enacted laws on property and personal relations between individual entities that have equal rights in society. These include the general principles of civil law, contract law, warranty law, auction law, trademark law, patent law, copyright, marriage law, inheritance law and adoption law. China has also enacted laws on business relations between individual companies with equal status in society: mainly company law, company law, single-investor enterprise law, securities law, insurance law, transferable instruments law, commercial banking law, maritime law and fiduciary law. This Chinese Criminal Procedure Law (中华人民共和国刑事诉讼法) governs all phases of criminal proceedings. This is different from the system of administrative sanctions (including imprisonment for several years) and procedures, which are regulated in a separate system of laws and regulations. [7] The law of criminal procedure governs the conduct of investigations, including pre-trial detention, interrogation, surveillance, prosecution (by an institution called the “Public Prosecutor`s Office”) and the conduct of trials/defence of the accused. [8] However, the independence of the courts and institutions involved in the investigation, prosecution and trial of crimes in China remains questioned by the structure of the government and its organs in the PRC. An example of the structural obstacles to the independence of the courts is the Communist Party of China`s system of political-legal committees, whereby “the Party has the power to instruct, supervise or review the courts in relation to specific decisions of individual cases or categories of cases that attract the attention of the Party.” [9] The most important thing is to get the Chinese company to sign the contract. In addition, it is better to have the contract signed also by the legal representative, whose name appears on the company`s business license.
Over the past two decades, legal education has proceeded in parallel with the growth of the legal profession. It is one of the most competitive academic disciplines in terms of enrolment in universities and colleges, and the number of judicial and legal education institutions continues to grow. This trend is due to the strong demand in the market for legal services and the need to improve the professional quality of judges and prosecutors. The highest and ultimate source of legal standards in the PRC is nominally the Constitution of the People`s Republic of China. It defines the framework and principles of the government and lists the fundamental rights and obligations of Chinese citizens. In practice, however, although these “fundamental rights” include “freedom of expression, press, assembly, association, procession and demonstration”, the application of these rights and other elements of the Constitution is subject to the discretion of the Communist Party leadership. There are currently more than 200 laws in force issued by the AFN. For the full texts of Chinese laws, please click on the list of Chinese laws. The Ministry of Justice of the People`s Republic of China manages the prison and the Laogai and focuses mainly on regulating the legal profession.
Historically, the legal profession in the PRC has been insignificant. In the late 1970s, there were no more than a few hundred lawyers in practice. Since the 1980s, when Chinese leaders became aware of the importance of the legal system and advocacy in promoting economic development, the training of lawyers has increased significantly. From 1986 to 1992, the number of lawyers in the country more than doubled from 21,500 to 45,000 and reached 143,000 in 2008. [10] The Council of State has the power to issue administrative regulations on social and economic matters and fields in accordance with laws adopted by the NPC and its Standing Committee. These laws include environmental protection laws, tax and customs regulations, product quality laws, etc. In these areas, the central government and its bodies are superior to other parties, such as businesses and individuals, in that they exercise regulatory power. The essential areas of law are substantive law and procedural law. The former include administrative law, criminal law, civil or business law and business law.
These are divided into different branches. For example, contract law is considered a branch of civil law. The latter includes civil procedure law, criminal procedure law and administrative procedural law. The Chinese legal system is largely a civil system, although it has its roots in the Great Qing Code and various historical systems that largely reflect the influence of continental European legal systems, particularly the German civil law system in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Hong Kong and Macao, the two special administrative regions, although they are required to comply with the Constitution and the Basic Laws, as well as the power of the National People`s Congress, are able to largely maintain their colonial-era legal systems. In terms of administrative law, China has promulgated laws relating to state administration: mainly regulations on administrative sanctions related to law enforcement, administrative criminal law, law on administrative licenses, law on national defense, law on public procurement, law on education, law on scientific and technological progress, the Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Act and the Environmental Protection Act. China has also enacted laws on the control of administrative activities: mainly the Law on Administrative Control and the Law on the Review of Administrative Activities. Although administrative litigation involving governments is on the rise because citizens are taking legal steps to protect their property from government violations, it is still quite difficult for the court to render fair judgments or effective enforcement because the court judges are appointed by the Communist Party and the funding comes from the government. Cases are decided in two instances of the trial before the People`s Courts. This means that a party can appeal to the people`s court at the next higher level only once due to a judgment or order of first instance of a local people`s court, and the people`s procuratorate can protest against a court decision at the people`s court at the next higher level.
However, a limited number of civil and commercial cases can be heard for the third time under the Code of Civil Procedure, a regime known as the Supervision of Proceedings. In addition, judgments or orders of first instance of the local people`s courts become legally effective at different levels if no party appeals within the prescribed time limit for appeal. All judgments and orders issued by the Supreme People`s Courts as the Court of First Instance shall take effect immediately. This policy was changed in 1979, and Deng Xiaoping and the CCP introduced an “open door” policy that pursued a utilitarian policy of rebuilding the social structure and legal system, where the law was used as a useful tool to support economic growth. Since then, China has developed a formal legal system. The considerable increase in the number of laws adopted and the increased attention paid to the implementation and enforcement of laws have created a more stable legal environment compared to the Maoist era. The country is currently in a transition phase as its legal system evolves. Researcher Daniel C.K.
Chow describes the current system as the “rule of law” rather than the “rule of law.” [1] The expansion of the legal profession has had a positive effect on legal awareness. By 2002, 2,156 legal aid centres had been established with more than 7,000 full-time lawyers. According to the Ministry of Justice, this system will be further expanded because “the establishment of a system of mutual legal assistance” is a priority of the Chinese government, as stated in the 10th Five-Year Plan (adopted in April 2002). Since 1978, the government has moved considerably away from the emphasis on class status and replaced it with a presumption of equality. The principle of legal equality is enshrined in fundamental laws such as the Law on Economic Contracts (1982), which provides that Contracting Parties enjoy equal rights, the General Principles of Civil Law (1987), which confers different rights on all natural persons, and Administrative Procedural Law (1989), which allows each citizen to bring actions against administrative authorities.