Paper
Mei Ying Gechlik (Veron Hung)
REQUIRED IMAGE
Paper
Judicial Reform in China: Lessons from Shanghai
This study seeks to answer three questions: Are interference, intracourt and intercourt influence, and judicial corruption of a lesser magnitude in Shanghai than in other parts of China? If so, what measures has Shanghai taken to accomplish this? What lessons about judicial reform in China can be learned from Shanghai’s experiences?
Published on Apr 15, 2005
Summary
The George W. Bush administration in September 2002 laid out in the "National Security Strategy of the United States" its strategy toward China: "We welcome the emergence of a strong, peaceful, and prosperous China, "During a trip to Asia in March 2005, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice adopted a similar phrase to welcome "the rise of a confident, peaceful, and prosperous China."
Implicit in Washington’s message is its concern about the potential threat of China’s rise. To ease such concern prevailing outside China and to respond to criticisms about the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) governance spreading across the country, Beijing has vowed to establish a "socialist harmonious society" that features, among other characteristics, the rule of law, fairness, and justice. Unfortunately, courts in China have yet to exemplify the rule of law, fairness, and justice. Understanding that its governance cannot be sustained by a dysfunctional justice system, Beijing has taken a series of actions to reform China’s judiciary.
This study seeks to analyze whether fairness has been achieved in Shanghai and what this means to China as a whole, and it tries to accomplish this through extensive literary research as well as a survey and interviews in China, especially Shanghai. This study seeks to answer three questions: Are interference, intracourt and intercourt influence, and judicial corruption of a lesser magnitude in Shanghai than in other parts of China? If so, what measures has Shanghai taken to accomplish this? What lessons about judicial reform in China can be learned from Shanghai’s experiences?
Click on link above for the full text of this Carnegie Paper.
About the Author
Veron Mei-Ying Hung is an associate in the Carnegie Endowment’s China Program. She has in-depth experience in Chinese law, and law and politics in the Asia-Pacific region. In academia and the private sector, she has studied such areas as legal reform in China, constitutional development in Hong Kong, human rights in Cambodia, and trade with China. She is the author of "China’s WTO Commitment on Independent Judicial Review: Impact on Legal and Political Reform"(American Journal of Comparative Law) and "Getting to Democracy in Hong Kong" (Carnegie Endowment).
Also published in The Columbia Journal of Asian Law, Spring/Fall 2005 issue, Volume 19, Number 1.
About the Author
Mei Ying Gechlik (Veron Hung)
Former Non-Resident Associate
- Protecting Intellectual Property Rights in Chinese Courts: An Analysis of Recent Patent Judgments
- Getting to Democracy in Hong KongOther
Mei Ying Gechlik (Veron Hung)
Recent Work
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- The Plaza Accord and Its Relevance for ChinaCommentary
The Plaza Accord was not an externally imposed punishment of Japan but part of a broader restructuring that Japanese economists and policymakers themselves recognized was necessary. Its effects were undermined, however, when Tokyo responded to the resulting slowdown with policies that exacerbated investment, credit expansion, and the very imbalances the adjustment was intended to resolve.
Michael Pettis
- The Uncomfortable Truth About EU EnlargementCommentary
Before the next wave of EU enlargement takes place, the union needs to grapple with thorny questions of how power is distributed among its members.
Emil Sondaj Hansen, Ditte Brasso Sørensen
- What to Watch When Trump and Xi Meet in WashingtonCommentary
The real test may come after the leaders leave the room.
- +1
Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Oriana Skylar Mastro, Yukon Huang, …
- Will the Far Right Change Europe’s Russia Policy?Commentary
The European far right might fail to steer EU policy in the direction Russia wants, but they will create enough chaos inside Europe to benefit the Kremlin.
Dimitar Bechev
- Untangling the Nuclear Knot: A Constructive Agenda for Managing China’s Nuclear Relations with the United States and Its AlliesPaper
The nuclear relationship between China and the United States is increasingly shaped by widening perception gaps rather than deliberate strategic design.
Tong Zhao
