The Evolution of the Law of Torts in China: A Bird’s Eye View

Introduction The formal legal rules governing tortious behaviors in post-Mao China can be traced back to the General Principles of the Civil Law (Minfa Tongze, hereinafter as “General Principles”) promulgated in 1986. Since then, tort disputes have become a main type of cases litigated in courts. In 2007, the number of tort cases accepted by Chinese courts totaled to about 863,000, and in 2008, this number rose further to 992,000 (Wang 2010, p.2). It is beyond doubt that tort law has been playing a significant role in carving out the incentives of businesses and individuals in China. During the same period of time, a large number of changes have occurred in the law of torts. The overall movement of this field of law is in a direction to expanding protection of tort victims. This paper is to outline these changes in Chinese tort law. Due to the limit on space, I will focus mainly on the formal rules, with only occasional reference to the positions taken by courts in practice. Moreover, my current work looks specifically to the alterations appearing in the law, but does not attempt to present an all-inclusive view of the Chinese tort law. For those who are interested in probing the Chinese tort law in a comparative perspective, this paper will provide essential information about the mutation of tort law in a society undergoing economic transition. More generally, students of modern China may also find useful clues in this paper for understanding of the concerns embedded in China’s formal institutions, as well as the interaction among different branches of government to address these concerns. Part I will describe the sources of tort law in China so as to set the ambit for this paper. In this part, I will also display a brief legislative history of the law of torts in China. Part II will discuss with some detail the changes seen in the Chinese tort law that have strengthened victim protection in a variety of ways. Part III will make a rough assessment of the efficiency implications of the evolution of tort law in China. A short conclusion with suggestion for a future research agenda will follow Part III.