System Economic Law Theory - Research on the Economic Law System and its Relationship with the WTO - Economic Law Library

Author: Liu Zhexin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-01
Features: The economic legal system in China since more than two decades of reform and opening-up can be described as "rapidly advancing." In terms of economic legislation, laws such as the Budget Law, the People's Bank of China Law, the Income Tax Law, and the Price Law have been formulated to perfect macroeconomic regulation. These laws consolidate the achievements of reforms in fiscal and financial areas, providing a certain legal basis for further transforming the government's role in managing the economy and ensuring the healthy operation of the national economy. In establishing market rules and maintaining market order, laws such as the Anti-Unfair Competition Law, the Consumer Rights Protection Law, and the Urban Real Estate Administration Law have been enacted. These laws reflect the principles of fairness, justice, openness, and efficiency in a market economy, contributing to the development of a unified and open market system nationwide. However, it should be noted that establishing a legal system compatible with the socialist market economy remains a completely new challenge. There is still much that is unfamiliar, unclear, and outdated in our understanding. Particularly in the face of a gradually emerging and market economy, our legal work lags significantly in many aspects, with numerous unresolved issues in law enforcement and judicial processes. Over two decades of economic law research has presented a vibrant and diverse landscape, with a constant emergence of various academic viewpoints and schools of thought. However, overall, research on the fundamental theories of economic law remains relatively weak, and the study of specific legal branches is fragmented and unsystematic. Practice demands that we address and explain numerous perplexing questions, requiring dedicated effort in rigorous research and theoretical and knowledge innovation. With the government increasingly intervening in economic life, we must grapple with some very serious questions: What is the legal basis for government intervention? Are there boundaries to the depth and scope of such intervention? Should the government "lead the market," and does it have the capacity to do so? How should we use legal systems to steer the market economy? In the process of deepening reforms in state-owned enterprises, we must seriously examine such issues as: Who should specifically oversee and manage state capital? Should investors be separated from regulators? Which sectors and industries should state-owned enterprises cover, and through what means should they merge and consolidate? How can state-owned enterprises fulfill their intended roles without undermining market competition mechanisms? After joining the WTO, every aspect of China's economy, politics, and social life will face significant impacts. We must research: What challenges and opportunities will the development of market economy legal systems encounter? In the context of economic globalization, how will our economic legal system play a role in international competition? What legal environment will we provide for foreign investors and trading partners entering China? How can we adopt measures to safeguard national economic security and interests? Faced with increasingly deteriorating environmental conditions and resource scarcity, the task of building a legal framework for the circular economy is arduous. How can legislation define the rights and obligations of the public, guiding and encouraging their participation in circular economy development? How can we enhance proactivity and control to achieve a win-win situation for economic development and environmental resource protection, increasing the total benefit? How can the functions of law—encouragement, guidance, and education—be leveraged through benefit-sharing mechanisms to balance individual and societal interests? In terms of market regulation and supervision, how can we determine the scope, timing, and appropriate intensity of legal regulation and supervision? What effective methods, approaches, and tools do we have legally to regulate and supervise? What are the similarities and differences in regulating and supervising various types of factor markets? Our economic law theoretical research should be closely tied to economic life, avoiding the pressing issues raised by current economic reforms and development, and daring to innovate in concepts, theories, and systems. This is the obligation and glorious duty of every researcher and practitioner engaged in economic law studies. We have compiled and published the Economic Law Library to provide a platform for researchers and practitioners in economic law. The first works in the Economic Law Library are the results of projects from key economic law disciplines in Shanghai and the Shanghai Education Commission's key economic law disciplines. We will subsequently expand our selection to publish outstanding research achievements of numerous domestic and international scholars in economic law. We firmly believe that these excellent works will attract widespread attention from all sectors of society and will play a role in promoting and advancing China's economic legal system. We hope that the Economic Law Library will become a unique gem in the flourishing garden of legal studies.