earticle

영어

This article explores the recent development of the Supreme People’s Court of China, seeking to achieve a thorough understanding of the world’s largest highest court that has so far remained largely obscure. Recognizing that the Court’s approach to exercising power in an authoritarian context has to a great extent challenged the Western understanding of judicial power in both democratic and non-democratic legal settings, this article intends to capture 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 era of transformation. Nevertheless, the Court’s incompetence and reluctance to challenge the bureaucratism and politicization suggests that the call for an impartial and authoritative judicial power would continue to be placed in jeopardy as long as the Court remains to operate in the shadow of the Party authority and lacks meaningful checks and balances at the institutional front. Drawing from the experience of the Court, this article eventually reflects on some deep-rooted misunderstandings of the legal development in China, providing a source of inspiration for reconceptualizing the internal logic of a distinct category of judicial power beyond the core Western democracies.

중국어

最高人民法院作为中华人民共和国的最高审判机关，在中国的法治建设和司法改革中扮演了重要的角色。考虑到中国的司法模式在一定程度有异于西方国家对司法权和权力制衡的普遍理解，有必要从最高人民法院的制度设计和实证经验出发，反思最高人民法院的功能定位和具有中国特色的分权制衡模式。当前正在进行的以审判权为中心的司法改革，体现了最高人民法院在社会转型期对司法权运行机制的功能调整和对现有司法体制瓶颈的自发性突破，其成功经验将为诠释西方民主型法治国家以外不同类型的司法权和分权制衡模式提供新的思路。