This open access book explores how China had already established political and economic dualismspolitical by the Common Era and economic by the 10th centurylong before the West developed its dualism of state and society in the 17th and 18th centuries. In traditional China, social relations were shaped through market-like contractual means, with land freely traded and disputes resolved in state courts. Yet, the nature of ownership, contracts, and trials differed profoundly from modern Western practices. This book tackles two key themes. First, it provides a detailed analysis of rights, laws, and trials in Qing China, covering family law, land law, court systems, and statutory law. Second, it reinterprets traditional Chinese legal concepts independently of modern Western frameworks, offering a fresh perspective on legal history. By situating Traditional Chinese Law within the broader context of Traditional Western Law and Modern Law, the book presents a groundbreaking model for comparative legal history. Written by a renowned legal historian, this well-grounded and profound work ingeniously integrates legal historical research with theoretical analysis. Through insightful interpretations utilizing Qing legal documents, it represents a significant contribution to the study of legal history in recent years. This book is of interest to historians, legal scholars, sociologists, and sinologists, offering valuable insights into the unique characteristics of the traditional Chinese legal order.

This book is open access, which means that you have free and unlimited access Presents an entirely new image of traditional Chinese law, based on extensive socio-historical research Establishes a solid foundation for contextualizing Western law by independently examining traditional Chinese law Depicts the entirety of traditional Chinese law, including civil and criminal law, the judiciary, and modern law

Autorentext

Hiroaki Terada, Emeritus Professor at Kyoto University, is a prominent figure in Japanese-Chinese legal history studies. He researched Qing Dynasty land law, the foundation of civil court judgments, and the role of statutory law in criminal trials. Ultimately, he introduced the concept of "non-rule-based law" or "public opinion-oriented law" in the context of Chinese law, which had a significant impact on the academic communities in both Japan and China

Inhalt

Chapter 1. Prologue: Traditional Chinese Legal Order.- Chapter 2. People and Family.- Chapter 3. Livelihood and Property.- Chapter 4. Social Relations.- Chapter 5. Order, Dispute and Lawsuit.- Chapter 6. Adjudication.- Chapter 7. Conviction and Sentencing.- Chapter 8. Law, Power, and Society.- Chapter 9. Traditional Law and Modern Law.- Chapter 10. Epilogue: Narrating Law across Civilizations.