Land Law

Author: Wang Xiaoli
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-04-01
Features:
Section 2: State Land Ownership
1. Concept and Nature of State Land Ownership
(1) Concept of State Land Ownership
State land ownership refers to the right of the state, on behalf of all the people, to legally possess, use, derive income from, and dispose of state-owned land. China practices a socialist public ownership of land, which includes both state ownership and collective ownership by laboring masses. The ownership of state-owned land is exercised by the State Council on behalf of the state. In practice, local governments at various levels are generally authorized by the State Council to exercise land ownership. The State Council and its affiliated land administrative departments have the authority to decide the possession, use, and income of state-owned land and retain the ultimate right of disposal.
(2) Nature of Land Ownership
The state is both a public law subject and a private law subject. As a political entity, it exercises public powers such as administrative authority and has the right to manage social public property belonging to all the people (including state-owned land). As a private law subject, the state can act as an ordinary civil party to manage its own property, but it must do so in a manner that is beneficial to the state's interests and the public interest. Therefore, state land ownership is primarily a civil right enjoyed by the state and falls under the category of civil legal relations, regulated by civil law. In such civil legal relations, the state holds an equal legal status with other civil entities, and state land ownership is equally protected by law as the rights of other civil entities. To clarify the nature of state land ownership, it is necessary to understand its relationship with several related concepts. First, state land ownership is distinct from state territorial sovereignty, which is a public law right regulated by international law and symbolizes state sovereignty. Second, state land ownership is different from the right of state land expropriation. The right of state land expropriation is a constitutional power of the state, not a right under civil law. It reflects a compulsory relationship between the state and the expropriated party, characterized by commands and obedience.
2. Characteristics of State Land Ownership
State land ownership exhibits distinct characteristics in terms of subject, object, and content:
(1) The subject of state land ownership is unique and unified
Uniqueness refers to the fact that the socialist public-owned land in China can only be held by the People's Republic of China, which represents the common will and fundamental interests of all the people. No entity outside the state, whether an individual or an organization, can under any circumstances become the owner of state-owned land or co-own state land ownership with the state. Unification refers to the fact that state land ownership can only be exercised by the state. Specifically, only the State Council can represent the state in exercising state land ownership. Without authorization from the state, no entity or individual has the right to exercise this right or any of its functions.