State sovereignty and the rule of law: the codification of private law in China

The main issue of this article is a comparison of codification of private law in the Republic of China (1912–1949) with the current fifth attempt to codify civil law in the People’s Republic of China, which is planned to be enacted in 2020. The aim of the paper is to prove that in both the most important factors for drafting new laws were not the internal needs of the state, but the necessity to regulate the position of the country on the international arena. The analysis is based on two main concepts: sovereignty and the rule of law, which are crucial for understanding this issue.

The purpose of this article is to indicate that all the fundamental private law institutions regarding liability for delicts, negligence, detriments etc. have its roots in Roman law. Lex Aquilia and its creative interpretation made by classical Roman lawyers can be one of the most valuable examples of this historical process. The following essay emphasizes that the classical Roman jurists have developed such an important legal instruments as: the concept of fault, negligence, due diligence, causation etc. Moreover the article contains source texts with case studies and its explanations based on classical interpretation made by Roman lawyers. In addition, the last part of the lecture indicates the main similarities and differences between ancient and modern private law instruments. The article may be useful for law students and legal practitioners to understand the origin and main idea of modern legal principals and therefore improve their skills.