Suggested Draft for Amendment to the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (Third Draft) and Legislative Reasons

Author: Jiang Wei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: Preface Since the promulgation of the "Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China," more than ten years have passed. Significant changes have occurred in the international environment, social structure, and market economy, and the lagging nature of the Civil Procedure Law has become increasingly prominent. In the absence of legislative functions, judicial interpretations have expanded, and the Civil Procedure Law has been fragmented and submerged by various forms of judicial interpretations and judicial reform measures. The Civil Procedure Law has gradually become disjointed, severely damaging the integrity and uniformity of the Civil Procedure Law code. Against this backdrop, Professor Jiang Wei and his PhD student Sun Bangqing submitted a draft proposal for revising the Civil Procedure Law to the annual meeting of the China Society of Civil Procedure Law in November 2003. Although this draft was still immature, it marked the beginning of the revision of the Civil Procedure Law in China. In the same month, the revision of the Civil Procedure Law was included in the legislative plan of the Standing Committee of the 10th National People's Congress. Afterward, Professor Jiang Wei and Dr. Sun Bangqing continued to revise the proposal, completing the first and second drafts, and established the "Revision and Improvement of the Civil Procedure Law Code" research team to undertake the key research project "Revision and Improvement of the Civil Procedure Law" under the Ministry of Justice.
The "Draft Proposal for the Revision of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (Third Draft)" was formulated by Professor Jiang Wei and Dr. Sun Bangqing based on discussions and arguments among the research team members, other relevant experts and scholars, senior judges from various courts in Jiangsu Province, and senior judges from various courts in Shandong Province. The draft proposal takes into account that the Enforcement Law and the Bankruptcy Law have been separately included in the legislative plan, so the enforcement procedures and the corporate bankruptcy repayment procedures are no longer stipulated in the Civil Procedure Law. However, the Evidence Law, due to its important role in the Civil Procedure Law and not yet being included in the legislative plan, is specially listed as a separate chapter for detailed provisions.
In addition to scholars, the research team for the draft proposal and the writing of the legislative explanation for the draft proposal also included some senior judges. The process of forming the third draft was marked by sharp exchanges and interactions between judges and scholars, as well as between the practical and theoretical communities. After completing the third draft of the draft proposal, the research team invited experts and scholars to provide a brief explanation of the legislative rationale for the third draft.
It is imperative and a challenging task to formulate a modern Civil Procedure Law code. Without hesitation, we have proposed a draft proposal for the revision of the Civil Procedure Law for the reference of the legislative authorities, with the hope of promoting the revision and improvement of the Civil Procedure Law in China.
The "Draft Proposal for the Revision of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (Third Draft)" was completed with the care and support of Yao Hong, Director of the Civil Law Office of the National People's Congress Law Commission, Sun Lihai, former Deputy Director, and Duan Jinglian, Researcher. We also extend our gratitude to Zhu Hongjun, President of the Wuxi Intermediate People's Court in Jiangsu Province, Wang Wuzhu, Vice President; Jiang Mingchuan, Director of the Shandong High People's Court; Zou Chuanning, President of the Yantai Intermediate People's Court in Shandong Province; and Huang Jinglan, Vice President.
The "Revision and Improvement of the Civil Procedure Law Code" Research Team
March 1, 2005