‘Rule of Law’ in China: The Interaction of Freedom of Contract and Good Faith with Cultural Norms

Just as the Chinese economy has accelerated in unprecedented fashion over the last thirty-five years the Chinese government has implemented a massive expansion of Chinese law, most of which is related to the creation of a market economy. Almost the entire Chinese legal system has been created over this period of time, something that took centuries for Western countries to accomplish. A major part of this legal revolution is still to be put in place — a grand or general Chinese Civil Code. This article will examine the recently promulgated first part of the Code project.