History of Chinese Law: Endogenous Innovation and Reception

The article traces the evolution of the legal system in China from ancient times to the present, with a focus on the effect of innovations and borrowings on traditional norms. The author identified the transformation patterns to determine those cultural, political, and external factors that shaped the unique hybrid model of Chinese legal system. The historical and legal method was applied to historical codes, decrees, and legal doctrines. The comparative legal method made it possible to compare and contrast Chinese legal institutions with foreign ones. The systematic approach highlighted the correlation between law, economy, and social processes. Chinese law started as a Confucian-Legalist synthesis, where morality was balanced with strict norms. Later, it was modified by Chinese socialism, which combines authoritarianism with market mechanisms and digital technologies. Innovations entered the system as borrowings but were always adapted to local realities to maintain the cultural continuity. The current legal system of the People’s Republic of China is dual as it binds the formal liberalization of the economic law with strict control over society through national security laws and the social credit system. In China, the legal system managed to develop without abandoning cultural identity because its evolution proceeded under strict political control.