The Power of the Supreme People's Court: Reconceptualizing Judicial Power in Contemporary China (The Rule of Law in China and Comparative Perspectives)

Description

This book explores the recent development of the Supreme People’s Court of China, the world’s largest highest court. Recognizing that its approach to exercising power in an authoritarian context has presented a challenge to the understanding of judicial power in both democratic and non-democratic legal settings, it captures the essence of the Court through its institutional design as well as functional practice. It argues that regardless of the deep-seated political and institutional constraints, the Court has demonstrated a highly pragmatic interest in fulfilling its primary functions and prudently expanding judicial power in the context of reform-era China. This notwithstanding, it also discusses how the Court’s incompetence and reluctance to challenge the bureaucratism and politicization suggests that the call for an impartial and authoritative judicial power will continue to be jeopardized while the Court operates in the shadow of Party authority and lacks meaningful checks and balances. Drawing on the experience of the Court, this book reflects on some deep-rooted misunderstandings of legal development in China, providing a source of inspiration for reconceptualizing the internal logic of a distinct category of judicial power. Cover Half Title Series Title Copyright Contents List of tables List of figures List of acronyms Acknowledgements 1 Introduction Widening the lens: the power of the highest courts beyond the West Examining judicial power through input and output factors Learning from the court’s everyday operation Structure of the book 2 The power of the court from an institutional perspective Introduction Organizational framework Court structure: from form to composition Court personnel: from composition to ranks A profile of the supreme court judges Recruitment Decision-making Career identity People’s courts or Party’s courts? The Party’s impact on ideology and policy making The Party’s impact on personnel matters The Party’s impact on handling cases Concluding analysis 3 The judicial practice of the court Introduction Is the court a court of last resort? Case types, distribution, and caseload The court’s impact beyond individual cases Does the court interpret or establish law? Distinguishing features Do abstract interpretations lead to judicial activism or judicialization? Are guiding cases guidance or compulsory instructions? Distinguishing features Limited role and impact of guiding cases Concluding analysis 4 The extrajudicial practice of the court Introduction Administrative functions of the court Requests for instructions Court performance management Adjudicatory supervision, administrative guidance, or centralized control? Political functions of the court The need to combat judicial corruption The need to redress litigation-related petitions Is the court a rational actor or tool of social control? Concluding analysis 5 The power of the court: rethinking and reinterpretation Introduction Highest courts in a separation-of-powers context: comparative analysis Separation of powers: the Western perspective Separation of powers: experience beyond the West Separation of powers with Chinese characteristics Normative versus functional analysis Judicial independence versus judicial interdependence Political-centred versus legal-centred operation Rethinking separation of powers from the experience of the court Conclusion Appendix: Interview design for the Chinese Supreme Court judges References Index