The Evolution of Law Reform in China: An Uncertain Path

‘Drawing on his experience as a scholar and a practitioner, Stanley Lubman brings together two extraordinary resources for those interested in understanding modern Chinese law. Aside from the collected wisdom of over two dozen leading experts on China’s legal system, covering almost every important subject, there is Lubman’s insightful introduction, placing the works of this anthology in context. This collection – work ranging from constitutional, procedural and administrative to civil and criminal law with a trenchant and comprehensive survey drawing upon the knowledge of a pre-eminent observer of the Chinese legal order for almost five decades – is exceptionally valuable.’
– James V. Feinerman, James M. Morita Professor of Asian Legal Studies, Georgetown University Law Center, US

‘Stanley Lubman has been an extraordinarily astute observer of Chinese society for half a century. The Evolution of Law Reform in China: An Uncertain Path is his latest gift to the field. In it, he both provides his own masterful overview of Chinese legal development and a rich sampling of views from leading commentators, Chinese and foreign, in law and other social sciences, regarding Chinese law and legal institutions today. Whatever uncertainty there may be regarding the path of law reform, one certainty is that this volume will be a valuable resource for scholars across a range of disciplines, as well as practitioners in law, business and public policy.’
– William P. Alford, Henry L. Stimson Professor of Law, Harvard Law School, US

‘Lubman skillfully selects articles addressing this issue of uncertainty and presents to the readers possible solutions to improve the certainty of law reform in China. As such, this edited book makes an important contribution in the systematic examination of the evolution of law reform in China. Lubman has astutely organized the articles, which are seemingly dispersed in various topics related to Chinese law, into an organic whole. . . An initial examination of the book reveals that it is one of the most thorough academic works under Lubman’s capable editorship, consisting of excellent articles by more than 30 leading scholars in the field of Chinese law. . . It will become a standard reference work and an essential tool for those interested in the subject. More impor-tantly, this excellent book will no doubt inspire scholars and practitioners to seriously explore new and innovative options that may lead to the successful resolution of the existing problems in Chinese law reform after the recent change of leadership.’
– Yun Zhao, Asian Journal of Criminology

29 articles, dating from 1999 to 2011
Contributors include: J. Chen, W. Chen, W. Chenguang, D. Clarke, C. Dingjian, M. Gallagher, F. Hualing, B. Liebman, K. O’Brien, R. Peerenboom, H. Xin

Contents:

Acknowledgements

Foreword Stanley B. Lubman

Introduction Stanley B. Lubman

PART I PERSPECTIVES
1. Donald C. Clarke (2008), ‘Legislating for a Market Economy in China’
2. Zhang Xianchu (2008), ‘Commentary on “Legislating for a Market Economy in China”’
3. Jianfu Chen (2008), ‘Experience of Law in the PRC’
4. Cai Dingjian (1999), ‘Development of the Chinese Legal System Since 1979 and its Current Crisis and Transformation’
5. Benjamin L. Liebman (2009), ‘Assessing China’s Legal Reforms’
6. Jerome A. Cohen (2008), ‘China’s Reform Era Legal Odyssey’
7. Wang Chenguang (2010), ‘From the Rule of Man to the Rule of Law’

PART II THE CONSTITUTION
8. Thomas E. Kellogg (2009), ‘Constitutionalism with Chinese Characteristics? Constitutional Development and Civil Litigation in China’

PART III LEGISLATURES AND LAW MAKING
9. Jianfu Chen (2008), ‘Sources of Law and Law-Making’

PART IV ADMINISTRATIVE LAW AND ADMINISTRATIVE LITIGATION
10. Randall Peerenboom (2002), ‘The Administrative Law Regime: Reining in an Unruly Bureaucracy’
11. He Xin (2009), ‘Administrative Law as a Mechanism for Political Control in Contemporary China’
12. Jamie P. Horsley (2010), ‘Update on China’s Open Government Information Regulations: Surprising Public Demand Yielding Some Positive Results’
13. Kevin J. O’Brien and Lianjiang Li (2005), ‘Suing the Local State: Administrative Litigation in Rural China’

PART V COURTS
14. Benjamin L. Liebman (2007), ‘China’s Courts: Restricted Reform’
15. Zhu Suli (2010), ‘The Party and the Courts’
16. Willy Lam (2009), ‘The Politicisation of China’s Law-Enforcement and Judicial Apparatus’
17. Yang Su and Xin He (2010), ‘Street as Courtroom: State Accommodation of Labor Protest in South China’
18. Qin Xudong (2010), ‘Calling for Judicial Reform’

PART VI CRIMINAL PROCESS
19. Murray Scot Tanner and Eric Green (2008), ‘Principals and Secret Agents: Central versus Local Control Over Policing and Obstacles to “Rule of Law” in China’
20. He Weifang (2008), ‘The Police and the Rule of Law: Commentary on “Principals and Secret Agents”’
21. Ira Belkin (2007), ‘China’
22. Weidong Chen (2010), ‘Retrospection and Perspective: Chinese Criminal Procedure Law (1979–2009)’
23. Mike McConville (2011), ‘A Note on Administrative Punishment in China’

PART VII LEGAL PROFESSION
24. Alison W. Conner (2010), ‘China’s Lawyers and their Training: Enduring Influences and Disconnects’
25. Hualing Fu and Richard Cullen (2008), ‘Weiquan (Rights Protection) Lawyering in an Authoritarian State: Building a Culture of Public-Interest Lawyering’
26. Eva Pils (2009), ‘The Dislocation of the Chinese Human Rights Movement’

PART VIIIEXTRA-JUDICIAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION
27. Aaron Halegua (2005), ‘Reforming the People’s Mediation System in Urban China’
28. Mary E. Gallagher (2005), ‘”Use the Law as Your Weapon!”: Institutional Change and Legal Mobilization in China’

PART IX CITIZEN PETITIONS AND COMPLAINTS: XINFANG
29. Carl F. Minzner (2006), ‘Xinfang: An Alternative to Formal Chinese Legal Institutions’