Law and the Party in China

In the Xi Jinping era, it has become clear that the rule of law, as understood in the West, will not appear in China soon. But was this ever a likely option? This book argues China's legal system needs to be studied from an internal perspective, to take into account the characteristic architecture of China's Party-state. To do so, it addresses two key elements: ideology and organisation. Part One of the book discusses ideology and the law, exploring how the Chinese Communist Party conceives of the nature of law and its position within its broader range of policy tools. Part Two, on organisation and the law, reviews how these ideological principles manifest themselves in the application of law, as well as the reform of the Party-state. As such, it highlights how the Party's plans and approaches run counter to mainstream theoretical expectations, and advocates a greater attention to the inherent logic of the system itself.

• The first legal study of China that explicitly embeds law in the Party-state framework that will enable lawyers and politics scholars to better grasp its intricate architecture
• Explores the role of Party ideology in the legal system, drawing attention to the importance of indigenous Party thought, and provides a framework for understanding Chinese law in the Xi Jinping era
• Explores the implications of ideology and organisation in a number of case studies to ensure the book contains vivid examples of its ideas in practice, as well as theory