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Chinese Law

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Book cover Legal Traditions in Asia

Part of the book series: Ius Gentium: Comparative Perspectives on Law and Justice ((IUSGENT,volume 80))

Abstract

This chapter unfolds the rather long history of Chinese law with its institutions and legal thinking, divided into five units. The first unit has early history in focus from the beginning of Chinese law to the end of the Tang period with milestones such as the Han and the Tang Codes and their analysis. The second unit tells the story of the modern history of Chinese law from the Tang period until the twentieth century, focusing on ongoing codification and its masterpieces. The third unit deals exclusively with Chinese legal philosophy, concentrating on the debate between Confucian and legist thinkers. To this socio-economic factors are added, such as familiarism, the secrecy of law, the influence of the yin–yang school to arrive at a more sophisticated understanding of Chinese legal thinking. The fourth unit is dedicated to substantive law, particularly family law, criminal law and public administration. The last unit places traditional law in the turbulent Chinese history of the twentieth century.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Maspero (1978: 49–52) and Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 10–12).

  2. 2.

    Li (2013: 132–134, 147–148), Salát (2003:18–20), Maspero (1978: 73–77), Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 19) and Creel (1980: 28).

  3. 3.

    MacCormack (1996: 2).

  4. 4.

    Head and Wang (2005: 67–72) and Li (2013: 236–241, 246).

  5. 5.

    Salát (2003: 133–233).

  6. 6.

    For the English translation see Hulsewé (1985).

  7. 7.

    Csikszentmihalyi (2006: 24–27).

  8. 8.

    Li (2013: 206–261, 284–288).

  9. 9.

    de Bary and Bloom (1999: 312).

  10. 10.

    Dawson (2002: 31).

  11. 11.

    Li (2013: 260–265) and Gernet (2001: 102–106; 130–131).

  12. 12.

    Head and Wang (2005: 86–92), Li (2013: 288–290), MacCormack (2004: 51–52), Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 62–63) and Csikszentmihalyi (2006: 29).

  13. 13.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 76–79), Gernet (2001: 191, 205–207) and Head-Wang (2005: 116).

  14. 14.

    Gernet (2001: 194–195).

  15. 15.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 79–81) and Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 112–113).

  16. 16.

    Head and Wang (2005: 110; 118).

  17. 17.

    Head and Wang (2005: 120; 124–125).

  18. 18.

    As to the relevant passages of the Code see Johnson (1979: 49–61, 88–104, 150–152, 197–235).

  19. 19.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 113–114).

  20. 20.

    Gernet (2001: 241–242) and Lee (2000: 77–78).

  21. 21.

    Nansen (1997: 544) and Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 139–140).

  22. 22.

    Dawson (2002: 42–44).

  23. 23.

    Miyazaki (1980: 56–58) and Head and Wang (2005: 144–146).

  24. 24.

    Head and Wang (2005: 146–150) and Miyazaki (1980: 58).

  25. 25.

    Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 144–145), Gernet (2001: 243–245) and Miyazaki (1980: 59; 70–71).

  26. 26.

    Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 177), Head and Wang (2005:152–154) and Gernet (2001: 288–292).

  27. 27.

    Head and Wang (2005: 156–157; 171–173).

  28. 28.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 130), Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 191–192) and Gernet (2001: 307–310; 318).

  29. 29.

    Head and Wang (2005: 180–189).

  30. 30.

    Gernet (2001: 373–375), Head and Wang (2005: 215–216) and Schirokauer-Brown (2006: 235–238, 240–242, 250–254).

  31. 31.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 184) and Head and Wang (2005: 199–209).

  32. 32.

    Li (2013: 210–211), Nansen (1997: 535–536) and Maspero (1978: 361–367).

  33. 33.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 226–230).

  34. 34.

    Salát (2003: 30–31) and T’ung-Tsu (1961: 230–234, 238–240).

  35. 35.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 236).

  36. 36.

    Lunyu XII.17: Salát (2003: 31).

  37. 37.

    Li (2013: 213) and Maspero (1978: 369–371).

  38. 38.

    Lunyu II:3.

  39. 39.

    Salát (2003: 35–40).

  40. 40.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 241–244).

  41. 41.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 246–247).

  42. 42.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 261–263).

  43. 43.

    Shang (1928: 258–259, 274; 287–288).

  44. 44.

    Shang (1928: 175–197).

  45. 45.

    Chung-ying (1997: 528–529).

  46. 46.

    Schirokauer-Brown (2006: 46–47).

  47. 47.

    Salát (2003: 70–73).

  48. 48.

    Han Feizi 49: de Bary and Bloom (1999: 203).

  49. 49.

    Peerenboom (1993:153–154, 160).

  50. 50.

    Shang (1928: 303).

  51. 51.

    Peerenboom (1993: 73–103, 242–256).

  52. 52.

    MacCormack (1996: 24) and Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 185).

  53. 53.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 219).

  54. 54.

    Creel (1980: 36–37) and Miyazaki (1980: 58–59).

  55. 55.

    MacCormack (1996: 13; 33).

  56. 56.

    MacCormack (1996: 11).

  57. 57.

    Zhang (2014: 434–435).

  58. 58.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 15–19).

  59. 59.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 20–24).

  60. 60.

    MacCormack (2006: 60–65) and T’ung-Tsu (1961: 25–29).

  61. 61.

    MacCormack (2006: 65–79).

  62. 62.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 29–31).

  63. 63.

    MacCormack (1996: 88–89) and T’ung-Tsu (1961: 9–102).

  64. 64.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 91–99).

  65. 65.

    Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 173–176) and T’ung-Tsu (1961: 102–105).

  66. 66.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 102–110).

  67. 67.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 118–123).

  68. 68.

    MacCormack (1996: 93; 96).

  69. 69.

    Creel (1980: 35–36) and Head and Wang (2005: 52–53).

  70. 70.

    Drapkin (1989: 154–155) and Creel (1980: 43).

  71. 71.

    Head and Wang (2005: 99–101).

  72. 72.

    Head and Wang (2005: 121–123; 184).

  73. 73.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 41–64), MacCormack (1996: 78–87) and MacCormack (2001: 174–175; 181).

  74. 74.

    Zhang (2014: 205).

  75. 75.

    T’ung-Tsu (1961: 64–70).

  76. 76.

    MacCormack (1996: 15–16).

  77. 77.

    Miyazaki (1980: 59–62).

  78. 78.

    Miyazaki (1980: 63–69).

  79. 79.

    Huang (2010: 63–64; 76–78; 194).

  80. 80.

    Ladany (1992: 44–46).

  81. 81.

    Chen (2008: 28).

  82. 82.

    For details of modern history see Gernet (2001: 471–482), Schirokauer and Brown (2006: 30–308; 319–320; 323–338) and Fairbank and Goldman (2006: 279–342).

  83. 83.

    Ladany (1992: 48–51).

  84. 84.

    Jordán (2008: 30–37) and Chen (2008: 35).

  85. 85.

    Huang (2001: 44; 197–198).

  86. 86.

    Ladany (1992: 58–61).

  87. 87.

    Jordán (2008: 54–58).

  88. 88.

    Ladany (1992: 67–70; 112–115).

  89. 89.

    Jordán (2008: 133–140) and Ladany (1992: 82–84; 92–93).

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  1. Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Budapest, Hungary

    Janos Jany

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Jany, J. (2020). Chinese Law. In: Legal Traditions in Asia. Ius Gentium: Comparative Perspectives on Law and Justice, vol 80. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43728-2_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43728-2_10

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