(Explaining Lawsuits) Chapter on Civil Liability for Infringement

Author: Lin Jia
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-12-28
Features: Tort law is an important part of civil law. It not only, together with property law and contract law, serves as the fundamental law for protecting social property and maintaining transaction relationships under market economy conditions, but it also shoulders the crucial responsibility of safeguarding the personal interests of civil subjects. With the establishment and development of China's market economy system, the civil law philosophy centered on rights has gradually gained widespread acceptance, and people's legal awareness and sense of rights have. When property is wrongfully taken, the body is injured, names are misused, or dignity is insulted, people begin to turn to the law to protect their rights. The fundamental legal norms for protecting people's property rights and personal rights from infringement are tort law. Tort law embodies the law's human-centered philosophy, which is clearly evident from the evolution of its liability principles. Traditional tort law is based on the principle of fault liability, where the actor is only responsible for their wrongful actions, and no liability arises without fault. However, with the rapid development of the technological revolution and the resulting economic crises, environmental pollution, labor disputes, and other issues, legal thought has undergone profound changes. The social-oriented approach has replaced the individual-oriented approach, becoming the mainstream of legal thought. In the field of tort law, no-fault liability or strict liability has emerged. If a person's actions cause harm to others, they must bear civil liability for the resulting damages, regardless of whether they had a subjective fault. Currently, no-fault liability is widely applied in areas such as industrial injuries, industrial pollution, traffic accidents, medical malpractice, and product liability, effectively addressing many social issues arising from modern economic development. No-fault liability has become an important supplement to the fault liability principle.
The provisions of tort law in China are primarily found in Chapter 6 "Civil Liability" of the General Principles of Civil Law of the People's Republic of China. This chapter stipulates both general and special civil liabilities for torts. General civil liability for torts is based on the fault liability principle, covering violations of property rights, intellectual property rights, and personal rights. Special civil liability for torts is based on no-fault liability and fairness liability principles, mainly including the following types: (1) harm caused by dangerous activities, such as high-risk operations causing harm or construction on the ground causing harm; (2) harm caused by specific entities, such as damages caused by government agencies and their staff performing duties, or by individuals lacking capacity or with limited capacity; (3) harm caused by special objects, such as product liability, environmental pollution liability, building liability, and animal liability.
The compilation of this book is based on the provisions of the General Principles of Civil Law. Through the analysis of each case, it elaborates on the relevant legal regulations, enabling readers to understand the basic rights of civil subjects and learn about the legal remedies available when their rights are infringed. Without the assertion and relief of rights, there can be no social justice and fairness. We hope that more people will take up the sword of law to protect their legitimate rights and interests. This is also the original intention behind the compilation of this book.