Access to Justice in China: Potentials, Limits, and Alternatives

48 Pages Posted: 18 Sep 2009

See all articles by Hualing Fu

Hualing Fu

The University of Hong Kong - Faculty of Law

Date Written: September, 15 2009

Abstract

There has been a “legislative explosion” in China in the past thirty years and a corresponding institutional development as a result of the growth of a cluster of reform-oriented legal institutions. Law reformers are developing a law-centric, court-centric, and lawyer-centric legal system. This agenda is limited and faces multiple challenges, including political challenges and challenges brought about by China’s social and economic transition. It is in this context that this paper discusses access to justice in China. Facing these challenges, the government is forced to re-consider the path of China’s legal reform and the importance and relevance of both “Western” experiences and the home-made alternatives. Indigenous values and systems are more resilient than given credit for in pushing back globalization. The paper, using access to lawyers and judges as examples, analyzes the tensions, dialogues, and compromises of different currents in China’s on-going legal reform.

Keywords: china, lawyer, legal reform, court, judges, civil justice, legal aid, mediation, customs, access to justice

JEL Classification: K00, K40, K41, N45

Suggested Citation

Fu, Hualing, Access to Justice in China: Potentials, Limits, and Alternatives (September, 15 2009). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1474073 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1474073

Hualing Fu (Contact Author)

The University of Hong Kong - Faculty of Law ( email )

Pokfulam Road
Hong Kong, Hong Kong
China

HOME PAGE: http://hub.hku.hk/rp/rp01245

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
1,070
Abstract Views
5,595
Rank
38,162
PlumX Metrics