Comparative Study on Inheritance Law (Series of Comparative Civil and Commercial Law) ((Series of Comparative Civil and Commercial Law))

Author: Liu Wen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-10-01
Features: Comparative civil and commercial law is not a legal system or department, but usually refers to the comparative study of civil and commercial law in different countries or regions, also known as comparative civil and commercial jurisprudence, which is an important branch of comparative law. In the history of comparative law, the comparative study of civil and commercial law was the pioneer and mainstream of the rise of comparative law. Since the 19th century, comparative law has become particularly popular in fields such as civil law and commercial law. After the end of World War II, although comparative law has made significant development and its research scope has been expanding, the comparative study of private law still dominates. A representative work like the International Encyclopaedia of Comparative Law is primarily focused on civil and commercial law. Comparative civil and commercial law carries out comparative studies on civil and commercial law in all-round and multi-dimensional ways. Its comparative methods include general and sectoral comparison, macro and micro comparison, horizontal and vertical comparison, content and form comparison, and so on. However, among all these comparative methods, there are essentially only two that are truly methodologically significant, namely the "descriptive comparative" and "analytical comparative" methods. "Private law is the foundation of all laws, and to govern public law, one must first govern private law." Based on the status of private law (i.e., civil and commercial law) in the legal systems of countries worldwide, conducting comparative studies on civil and commercial law holds significant importance. Currently, China is actively researching and formulating a civil code, and it is necessary to boldly learn from and adopt advanced legal rules and legislative techniques from developed countries and regions in regulating market economy legislation. This requires the foundation and prerequisite of comparative civil and commercial law studies. Comparison is essential for discernment, enabling the selection of the best practices. In judicial practice, whether applying private law or public law, legal professionals need to broaden their horizons, familiarize themselves with the basic provisions and doctrines of civil and commercial law in major countries and regions, and grasp the internal connections between different legal departments. This allows for a deeper understanding of the spirit of the law and continuous improvement of law enforcement and judicial standards. For legal education and research, conducting comparative civil and commercial law studies holds even greater significance. Comparative civil and commercial law provides fresh insights for faculty and researchers in law schools, helping them understand and respect the unique civil and commercial legal cultures of other countries, thereby deepening their understanding of their own legal systems, refining their knowledge structures, enhancing their research capabilities, and offering more scientific and reliable theoretical guidance for the development of the legal system in their own countries. Currently, China has made certain progress in comparative civil and commercial law studies, publishing several works on comparative civil law and some universities have even offered courses on comparative civil law. However, overall, the comparative study of civil and commercial law remains insufficiently comprehensive and in-depth, and there is no series of works on comparative civil and commercial law, which is disproportionate to the research on civil and commercial law itself. To address this, we have compiled this series of comparative civil and commercial law books, aiming to promote further development in legal system construction and academic research. This series includes: Comparative Study of General Civil and Commercial Law, Comparative Study of Property Law, Comparative Study of Contract Law, Comparative Study of Family Law, Comparative Study of Inheritance Law, Comparative Study of Intellectual Property Law, Comparative Study of Company Law, Comparative Study of Negotiable Instruments Law, Comparative Study of Securities Law, and Comparative Study of Bankruptcy Law. The authors of this series come from institutions such as the (People's University of China), (Renmin University of China), (University of International Business and Economics), (Central University of Finance and Economics and Political Science), (Xiamen University), the (Law Committee of the National People's Congress), and the (China Securities Regulatory Commission). They include both experts and professors from academia and legal professionals from relevant departments. They are all young scholars, most with doctoral degrees, with solid theoretical foundations and deep academic expertise. They are agile in thought, proactive in their pursuit of knowledge, and have been active at the forefront of academic research in related fields for many years, while also being familiar with practical operations. This has laid a solid foundation for ensuring the quality of the series. The legal system of property inheritance is an important part of civil law. I have been engaged in teaching and research in civil law for nearly 20 years, and property inheritance has always been a key area of my study and research. Many years ago, I participated in the National Social Science "Seven-Five" Plan project "Civil Law of China." The research findings of this project were published as several monographs. Under the pen name "Liu Wen," I contributed to writing some chapters of "Civil Law of China: Property Inheritance," published by the (People's University of China Press) in 1990. The monograph "Civil Law of China: Property Inheritance" provides a comprehensive and objective analysis of the historical evolution of the property inheritance system, revealing its essence and the laws governing its development and changes. However, while the book also compares and evaluates foreign systems in discussing specific property inheritance institutions, it primarily focuses on China's national conditions and judicial practices, explaining issues related to property inheritance. After completing the writing of this book, I conceived the idea of conducting an in-depth comparative legal study of specific institutions in property inheritance and writing a monograph on comparative inheritance law. However, due to my subsequent participation in writing other monographs such as "Civil Law of China: Intellectual Property" and other reasons, I delayed starting the work. In 2000, Professor Xu Wusheng and Professor Jin Baolan organized a group of civil law teachers and doctoral students to write a series of monographs on comparative civil and commercial law. I was honored to be responsible for writing "Comparative Study of Inheritance Law," fulfilling a long-standing wish. After careful study and research, I completed the writing of "Comparative Study of Inheritance Law." The book provides a comprehensive analysis and comparison of specific property inheritance institutions in major legal systems worldwide. It not only analyzes and compares the similarities and differences in specific inheritance institutions between China and typical countries in major legal systems such as France, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Russia but also legal materials from Asian and African countries and incorporates them into the analysis and comparison. The book also summarizes useful experiences from foreign inheritance legal systems, offering legislative recommendations for China to formulate a civil code and improve the legal system for property inheritance. Due to my limited academic capabilities, errors are inevitable, and I welcome criticism and corrections from senior scholars and colleagues in the field of law. I also welcome valuable suggestions from law students and readers from all walks of life.