Abstract

Abstract:

Communist Party of China (CPC) regulations are a distinctive feature of China’s political and legal system. The functions and status of these regulations have received considerable attention, and they have been assigned various normative positions within political and academic circles. This article presents empirical research on citations of CPC regulations in judicial decisions conducted to analyze their role in the judicial system and elucidate the interactive relationship between political power and the legal system in China. Several preliminary conclusions are drawn from statistical analysis of the types, timing, citation methods, and other characteristics of 29 important CPC regulations. In judicial practice, not only do CPC regulations serve as the basis of litigants’ arguments, but judges sometimes cite them in the reasoning component of judicial decisions, particularly in administrative cases. The citation of these regulations in judgments has become increasingly frequent over time, which is to some extent a reflection of the strengthening of the party-state system in the legal arena. At the same time, however, CPC regulations still differ in their application from national statutory laws, generally playing supportive and auxiliary functions. In essence, they are “soft laws,” which indicates the relative distance between political power and the judicial system in China.

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