The Chinese Civil Code: a landmark law amid some great pitfalls in codification

Abstract

Codification or re-codification swung back to life towards the end of the 20th century, but for different reasons in different countries. In this ‘movement’,  if there is one, China is the latest to offer its story of successful codification: On 28 May 2020 at the Third Meeting of the 13th National People’s Congress, the Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter, the 2020 Civil Code or the Code) was adopted and the Code became effective on 1 January 2021. The 2020 Civil Code contains 1260 articles in seven Books, each is respectively entitled General Principles, Rights in rem, Contracts, Personality Rights, Marriage and Family, Succession, and Torts.