Contemporary Western Synthesizing Legal Trends

Author: Bo Zhenfeng
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-10-01
Features: Whether it is Hegel's philosophy of law or Montesquieu's theory of the separation of powers, whether it is Rousseau's social contract theory or Pound's theory of social control, all shine with the brilliant light of Western legal civilization. The Western legal schools and trends that continuously emerge in the long history of civilization are a vivid embodiment of this. The "Western Legal Schools and Trends" series presents a panoramic view of the doctrines, origins, and developments of various Western legal schools and trends in China, providing readers with a brand-new perspective on understanding Western legal thought and trends. — Zhang Wenxian (Vice President of the China Law Society, Secretary of the Party Committee of Jilin University, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor of Law)
The process of modernizing the world's legal system is historically diverse and stable. Understanding Western legal schools and trends is highly beneficial for grasping their core theories and essence. The "Western Legal Schools and Trends" series provides an excellent overview of legal schools and trends as part of Western legal civilization, outlining the clear contours of Western legal wisdom and thought over a thousand years. This series helps broaden horizons, absorb key insights, and promote the modernization of China's legal system. — Gong Puxiang (President of the Jiangsu High People's Court, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor of Law)
Throughout the long history of human legal development, the wisdom of countless legal scholars and the spirit of various legal schools and trends have been integrated. Each school and trend contains profound philosophical insights, serving as different components of human civilization's development. Where does the wisdom of legal scholars lie, and where can one find these thought-provoking philosophies? The "Western Legal Schools and Trends" series, with its systematic, concise, and clear writing, complemented by visually rich pages, provides preliminary answers. — He Qinhua (President of East China University of Political Science and Law, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor of Law)
Since the 20th century, Western legal development has shown a trend toward "synthesis," leading to the emergence of synthetic legal thought. The rise of synthetic legal thought reflects the overall trend of comprehensiveness and marginalization in scientific development in the 20th century within the field of law. The fundamental characteristic of synthetic legal thought is its emphasis on the integration of natural law, analytical law, and sociological law. It advocates the unity of law as a combination of values, forms, and facts, promotes the study of legal phenomena through a synthetic approach, and fosters a comprehensive legal concept, legal philosophy, and legal system. Synthetic legal thought not only reflects the trend of convergence among the three major legal schools but also gives rise to synthetic law, which seeks to integrate and transcend these three schools. Additionally, synthetic legal thought is deeply embedded in various legal schools, such as legal policy studies, pluralistic legal studies, and new rhetoric legal studies.