The Spirit Of Traditional Chinese Law

Author : Geoffrey MacCormack
Publisher : University of Georgia Press
Page : 292 pages
File Size : 44,5 Mb
Release : 1996
Category : Law
ISBN : 0820317225

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The Spirit of Traditional Chinese Law by Geoffrey MacCormack Pdf

By the end of the eighth century A.D., imperial China had established a system of administrative and penal law, the main institutions of which lasted until the collapse of the Ch'ing dynasty in 1911. The Spirit of Traditional Chinese Law studies the views held throughout the centuries by the educated elite on the role of law in government, the relationship between law and morality, and the purpose of punishment. Geoffrey MacCormack's introduction offers a brief history of legal development in China, describes the principal contributions to the law of the Confucian and Legalist schools, and identifies several other attributes that might be said to constitute the "spirit" of the law. Subsequent chapters consider these attributes, which include conservatism, symbolism, the value attached to human life, the technical construction of the codes, the rationality of the legal process, and the purposes of punishment. A study of the "spirit" of the law in imperial China is particularly appropriate, says MacCormack, for a number of laws in the penal codes on family relationships, property ownership, and commercial transactions were probably never meant to be enforced. Rather, such laws were more symbolic and expressed an ideal toward which people should strive. In many cases even the laws that were enforced, such as those directed at the suppression of theft or killing, were also regarded as an emphatic expression of the right way to behave. Throughout his study, MacCormack distinguishes between "official," or penal and administrative, law, which emanated from the emperor to his officials, and "unofficial," or customary, law, which developed in certain localities or among associations of merchants and traders. In addition, MacCormack pays particular attention to the law's emphasis on the hierarchical ordering of relationships between individuals such as ruler and minister, ruler and subject, parent and child, and husband and wife. He also seeks to explain why, over nearly thirteen centuries, there was little change in the main moral and legal prescriptions, despite enormous social and economic changes.

Author : Jinfan Zhang
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 710 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2014-02-20
Category : Law
ISBN : 9783642232664

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The Tradition and Modern Transition of Chinese Law by Jinfan Zhang Pdf

The book was first published in 1997, and was awarded the first prize of scientific research by the Ministry of Justice during the ninth Five-Year Plan of China. In 2005, it was adopted the text book for the postgraduates of law majors. In 2009, it was awarded the second prize of the best books on law in China. The book discusses from different aspects the long legal tradition in China, and it not only helps us to have a further understanding of Chinese legal system but also combines theories and practice and illustrate the modern legal transition which probes the history of Chinese legal system. As is known to us all, China is a country with a long legal history, which can be traced back to more than three thousand year ago. So the legal tradition of China has been passed down from generation to generation without any interruptions. This feature is peculiar to Chinese legal history which is beyond all comparison with that of other countries such as ancient Egypt, ancient India, ancient Babylon and ancient Persia. Through the study of Chinese legal history we can have a deeper understanding of the histories, features, origins and the transition of Chinese legal tradition. The Chinese legal tradition originated from China, and it is the embodiment of the wisdom and creativity of Chinese civilization. The great many books, researching materials, legal constitutions, archives, files and records of different dynasties in China have provided us with rare, complete and systematic materials to research. The book has a complete, systematic and detailed research on Chinese legal tradition and its transition and it gives people a correct recognition of the process of the perfection of laws during its development and its position as well as its value in the social progress in order to grasp its regular patterns. It also has showed us the most valuable part and core of Chinese legal Tradition and it is a summary of Chinese legal tradition and its transition from different perspectives, different angles and different levels. From the book, we can see that the ancient Chinese Legal Culture had once shocked the world and exerted great influence on the civilization of the world legal system, especially the legal systems in Asian countries. The book also has discussed the reestablishment of law in the late Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Chinese law’s transition to modernity. In a word, the book has not only combined the legal system and the legal culture together, but also integrated the important historical figures and events ingeniously and it is a valuable and readable book with authenticity.

Author : Xiaoqun Xu
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 352 pages
File Size : 40,5 Mb
Release : 2020-08-03
Category : History
ISBN : 9780190060053

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Heaven Has Eyes by Xiaoqun Xu Pdf

Heaven Has Eyes is a comprehensive but concise history of Chinese law and justice from the imperial era to the post-Mao era. Never before has a single book treated the traditional Chinese law and judicial practices and their modern counterparts as a coherent history, addressing both criminal and civil justice. This book fills this void. Xiaoqun Xu addresses the evolution and function of law codes and judicial practices throughout China's long history, and examines the transition from traditional laws and practices to modern ones in the twentieth century. To the Chinese of the imperial era, justice was an alignment of heavenly reason (tianli), state law (guofa), and human relations (renqing). Such a conception did not change until the turn of the twentieth century, when Western-derived notions-natural rights, legal equality, the rule of law, judicial independence, and due process--came to replace the Confucian moral code of right and wrong. The legal-judicial reform agendas that emerged in the beginning of the twentieth century (and are still ongoing today) stemmed from this change in Chinese moral and legal thinking, but to materialize the said principles in everyday practices is a very different order of things, and the past century was fraught with legal dramas and tragedies. Heaven Has Eyes lays out how and why that is the case.

Author : Yongping Liu
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 384 pages
File Size : 54,7 Mb
Release : 1998
Category : Law
ISBN : UCSD:31822026168419

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Origins of Chinese Law by Yongping Liu Pdf

"Origins of Chinese Law develops and supports an original, yet controversial, picture of early Chinese law. Casting doubt on the accepted premise that there was a unified system of law and punishment throughout the ancient Chinese empire based on the wuxing, or five punishments, the author suggests a more complicated and diverse picture: that from their earliest origins the Chinese people were subject to different laws and punishments based on their clan or social status." "Using a wealth of literary evidence from the Confucian classics and historical writings, and making use of recent archaeological excavations of oracle bones, bronze inscriptions, and bamboo strips, the author elucidates the central concepts that formed the basis of early Chinese law such as Li, covenant, punishment, and the theories and practice of law of the Qin and Han dynasties."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Author : Zhiping Liang
Publisher : Springer Nature
Page : 347 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2023-03-10
Category : Law
ISBN : 9789811945106

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A Study of Legal Tradition of China from a Culture Perspective by Zhiping Liang Pdf

Professor Zhiping Liang offers a new understanding of Chinese legal tradition in this profoundly influential book. Unlike the available literature using the usual method of legal history research, this book attempts to illustrate ancient Chinese legal tradition through cultural interpretation. The author holds that both the concept and practice of law are meaningful cultural symbols. The law reveals not only the life pattern in a specific time and space but also the world of the mind of a specific group of people. Therefore, just as cultures have different types, laws embedded in different societies and cultures also have different characters and spirits. Believing that human experience is often condensed into concepts, categories, and classifications, the author begins his discussion with the analysis of relevant terms and then seeks to understand history by interpreting the interaction and interconnectedness of the words, ideas, and practices. Based on the same understanding, the author uses modern concepts reflectively and critically, consciously exploiting the differences between ancient and contemporary Chinese and Western concepts to achieve a more realistic understanding of history while avoiding the ethnocentrism and modern-centrism common in historical studies.

Author : Geoffrey MacCormack
Publisher : Law in East Asia Series
Page : 319 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2013
Category : Contracts
ISBN : 0854900934

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Traditional Chinese Penal Law by Geoffrey MacCormack Pdf

"This book is about the penal codes of imperial China, in particular those enacted by the T'ang, Sung, Ming abd Ch'ing dynasties"--Page ix.

Author : Bee Chen Goh
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 218 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2016-12-05
Category : Law
ISBN : 9781351922661

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Law Without Lawyers, Justice Without Courts by Bee Chen Goh Pdf

The Chinese have, since ancient times, professed a non-litigious outlook. Similarly, their preference for mediation has fascinated the West for centuries. Mediation has been popularized by the Chinese who subscribe to the Confucian notions of harmony and compromise. It has been perpetuated in the People's Republic of China and by the overseas Chinese communities elsewhere, such as in Malaysia and Taiwan. Seen as the chief contributing factor in their litigation-averse nature, as well as the reason behind the significant role given to traditional mediation, this compelling book traces the cultural tradition of the Chinese. It uses rural Chinese Malaysians as illustrative examples and offers new insights into the nature of mediation East and West. It is an important reference and essential resource for anyone keen to learn about traditional Chinese concepts of law, justice and dispute settlement. Equally, it makes a unique contribution to the existing ADR literature by undertaking a socio-legal study on traditional Chinese mediation.

Author : Jianfu Chen
Publisher : Martinus Nijhoff Publishers
Page : 792 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2015-12-22
Category : Law
ISBN : 9789047423430

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Chinese Law: Context and Transformation by Jianfu Chen Pdf

This book examines the historical and politico-economic context in which Chinese law has developed and transformed, focusing on the underlying factors and justifications for changes. It attempts to sketch the main trends in legal modernisation in China.

Author : John Owen Haley
Publisher : University of Georgia Press
Page : 277 pages
File Size : 40,7 Mb
Release : 2006
Category : Law
ISBN : 9780820328874

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The Spirit of Japanese Law by John Owen Haley Pdf

The Spirit of Japanese Law focuses on the century following the Meiji Constitution, Japan's initial reception of continental European law. As John Owen Haley traces the features of contemporary Japanese law and its principal actors, distinctive patterns emerge. Of these none is more ubiquitous than what he refers to as the law's "communitarian orientation." While most westerners may view judges as Japanese law's least significant actors, Haley argues that they have the last word because their interpretations of constitution and codes define the authority and powers they and others hold. Based on a "sense of society," the judiciary confirms bonds of village, family, and firm, and "abuse of rights" and "good faith" similarly affirms community. The Spirit of Japanese Law concludes with constitutional cases that help explain the endurance of community in contemporary Japan.

Author : Bernard G. Weiss
Publisher : University of Georgia Press
Page : 233 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2006
Category : Law
ISBN : 9780820328270

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The Spirit of Islamic Law by Bernard G. Weiss Pdf

Focuses on a Muslim legal science known in Arabic as usul al-fiqh. Whereas the kindred science of fiqh is concerned with the articulation of actual rules of law, this science attempts to elaborate the theoretical and methodological foundations of the law. It outlines the features of Muslim juristic thought.

Author : Tongzu Qu
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 324 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 1965
Category : China
ISBN : UOM:39076006005594

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Law and Society in Traditional China by Tongzu Qu Pdf

Author : Klaus Mu_hlhahn,Professor Klaus M?hlhahn
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 378 pages
File Size : 46,5 Mb
Release : 2009-04-30
Category : Law
ISBN : 0674054334

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Criminal Justice in China by Klaus Mu_hlhahn,Professor Klaus M?hlhahn Pdf

In a groundbreaking work, Klaus Muhlhahn offers a comprehensive examination of the criminal justice system in modern China, an institution deeply rooted in politics, society, and culture. In late imperial China, flogging, tattooing, torture, and servitude were routine punishments. Sentences, including executions, were generally carried out in public. After 1905, in a drive to build a strong state and curtail pressure from the West, Chinese officials initiated major legal reforms. Physical punishments were replaced by fines and imprisonment. Capital punishment, though removed from the public sphere, remained in force for the worst crimes. Trials no longer relied on confessions obtained through torture but were instead held in open court and based on evidence. Prison reform became the centerpiece of an ambitious social-improvement program. After 1949, the Chinese communists developed their own definitions of criminality and new forms of punishment. People's tribunals were convened before large crowds, which often participated in the proceedings. At the center of the socialist system was reform through labor, and thousands of camps administered prison sentences. Eventually, the communist leadership used the camps to detain anyone who offended against the new society, and the crime of counterrevolution was born. Muhlhahn reveals the broad contours of criminal justice from late imperial China to the Deng reform era and details the underlying values, successes and failures, and ultimate human costs of the system. Based on unprecedented research in Chinese archives and incorporating prisoner testimonies, witness reports, and interviews, this book is essential reading for understanding modern China.

Author : Jerome Alan Cohen,Fu-mei Chang Chen,R. Randle Edwards
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 448 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2017-03-14
Category : Law
ISBN : 9781400885831

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Essays on China's Legal Tradition by Jerome Alan Cohen,Fu-mei Chang Chen,R. Randle Edwards Pdf

In this volume of essays a group of scholars from Europe, Japan, the Republic of China, and the United States examines China's legal tradition to determine its importance for the study of both pre-modern China and of contemporary affairs. Originally published in 1981. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Author : Geoffrey MacCormack
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 332 pages
File Size : 42,9 Mb
Release : 1990
Category : Law
ISBN : UOM:39015024768932

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Traditional Chinese Penal Law by Geoffrey MacCormack Pdf

"This book is about the penal codes of imperial China, in particular those enacted by the T'ang, Sung, Ming, and Ch'ing dynasties. It does not touch on the administrative law of these dynasties nor, except in passing, on the customary law relating to matters such as contract or property. ... Hence, the book deals not with traditional Chinese law as such but only with that component represented by the penal codes"--Preface, page [vi].

Author : Jianfu Chen
Publisher : Martinus Nijhoff Publishers
Page : 440 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 1999-07-14
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9041111867

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Chinese Law by Jianfu Chen Pdf

Law, in particular its actual functioning in any given society, is above all a part of the culture of that society - a part of its historical, political, social and intellectual creation. If a black-letter' approach towards law in the West is under increasing criticism, it is particularly unhelpful, if not misleading, in understanding Chinese law, its nature and developments. Rather, to understand Chinese law, its nature and developments, we need to examine the Chinese legal traditions, the prevailing political and economic situations, Party policies on economic reform and tolerance towards political liberalisation, and scholarly discussions and debate. This is the approach of this book. Its aim is to put Chinese law in context', to outline the nature and present status of its development, and to analyse the meaning of the law within the Chinese context. However, this monograph does not ignore the practical needs for determining the precise contents of the black- letter' law either. A study of this kind necessarily involves a process of topic selection. However, to avoid over-generalisation and over-simplification, it also demands a considerable degree of comprehensiveness in coverage. For this reason, the book covers what the Chinese scholars term fundamental law' and basic branches' of law, while other topics are covered because they are either crucial for the understanding of the law (such as legal traditions in China) or of practical importance (such as foreign investment and trade). Chapter One provides an historical background to traditional Chinese legal culture' and modern law reforms. The historical background of specific topics is examined as the topics are analysed inthe following chapters. Chapter Two deals with the changing fate of law under Communist rule. Its focus is on the underlying factors and justifications for such changes. Chapter Three introduces discussions on specific branches of law, from public law (constitutional law, law-making, administrative law, criminal law, criminal procedure law) to private' law (civil law, family law, contracts, law on business entities, and law on foreign investment and trade). Each of these is dealt with in a separate chapter. After the analysis of these substantial topics, certain conclusions are drawn, which attempt to define the nature of Chinese law and its developments in present-day China.