THE STRUCTURE OF LEGAL EDUCATION IN CHINA

Huang Jin*, Wuhan University Law School, China

 

 

 

            China’s legal education is an important part of the national education as a whole. Before 1978, it had passed a tortuous course. But since 1978, legal education in China has been restored and developed rapidly.

 

            With the developments of more than 20 years, A new system of legal education with Chinese character has come into being. This system is one that encompasses many forms, levels and channels of legal education and training. Besides higher legal education as the principal part, we also have vocational, self-study and continued legal education through correspondence, radio, TV, multimedia and other long-distance means, spare-time courses, “qualification examination after self-study” and so on. Under the official statistics of 1998, there are 214 universities that offer legal education among more than 1,000 universities in China, about 80,000 students who are studying law (account for 2.5% of all students of higher education institutions); there are over 150 continued higher legal education institutions, around 86,000 students who are studying law (account for 4.6% of all students of continued higher education institutions); there are 57 secondary vocational law school, about 22,000 students; there are over 2000 schools or centers for training judicial administrators. In addition, China Training Center for International Lawyers (Shanghai), China Training Center for International Senior Legal Professionals (Beijing), China Training Center for International Senior Legal Professionals (Chongqing) and China Training Center for Senior Lawyers and Notaries were established cooperatively by the Ministry of Justice and some higher legal education institutions.

 

            Considering that higher legal education is as the principal part of China’s legal education, now we focus on it.

 

1.      Basic structure

In China, higher legal education includes education for academic qualifications and education for non-academic qualifications, and takes the forms of full-time schooling and non-full-time schooling. Higher legal education for academic qualifications includes special course education, regular course education and graduate program. Usually, higher legal education institutions and other higher legal education organizations conduct higher legal education. Universities and independent colleges mainly conduct regular course legal education and legal education at a still higher level. Specialized higher legal education schools conduct special course education. With the approval of the administrative department for education under the State Council, research institutes, such as China Academy of Social Science, Beijing, may undertake the graduate program. Other higher legal education organizations just conduct higher legal education for non-academic qualification.

 

In my view, as graduates from law schools will work as lawyer, judge or public service, they are senior and professional specialists in social activities, higher legal education should be conducted at least at the level of regular course education by universities or independent colleges, not by specialized higher education schools.

 

2.      Students

People graduated from senior middle schools and people with the same educational level, who have passed the entrance examinations (not special entrance examinations for higher legal education like the LSAT in the United States), shall be enrolled by higher legal education institutions that offer the necessary legal education for academic qualifications, and shall acquire the status of special course students or undergraduates.

 

People graduated from universities or independent colleges and people with the same educational level, who have passed the entrance examinations for law schools, shall be enrolled by higher legal education institutions that offer the necessary education for academic qualifications or research institutes that have obtained approval of undertaking the graduate program, and shall acquire the status of LL.M. candidates.

 

People who have completed the LL.M. graduate program and people with the same educational level, having passed the entrance examinations organized by law schools, shall be enrolled by higher legal education institutions that offer the necessary education for academic qualifications or research institutes that have obtained approval of undertaking the graduate program, and shall acquire the status of candidates for doctoral degree of law.

 

The basic length of schooling for special course legal education is 3 years, for regular course legal education it is 4 years, for graduate program for LL.M. and Professional Master of Law candidates it is from 2 to 3 years, for graduate program for Doctor of Law candidates it is from 3 to 4 years. The length of schooling for non-full-time higher legal education for academic qualifications shall be prolonged properly. Higher legal education institutions may, in light of actual needs and with the approval of the competent administrative department for education, readjust the length of schooling of their institutions.

 

3.      Degrees

In China, higher legal education applies a system of academic degrees. The legal academic degrees includes LL.B. (Bachelor of Law), LL.M. (Master of Law) and J.S.D. (Doctor of Law). Until now, there are 43 universities, independent colleges and research institutes that have the status as a LL.M. degree-conferring unit, 9 universities and one research institute that have the status as a Doctor of Law degree-conferring unit. In the circle of legal education, these ten universities and research institute as a Doctor of Law degree-conferring unit enjoy great prestige. They are as follows: Peking University, Wuhan University, Renmin University of China, China University of Political Science and Law, Jilin University, Southwest University of Political Science and Law, University of International Business and Economics, Xiamen University, Soochow University and East China University of Political Science and Law.

 

China’s higher legal education also applies a system of professional degree. In 1996, Professional Master of Law degree program was approved by the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council and carried out by some universities and independent colleges. This degree program aims at training candidates to become compound-and-applied-model senior specialists for legislative, judicial, administrative and legal service institutions.  The Professional Master of Law degree program is divided into two groups. As for one group, candidates are from non-law-discipline graduates at undergraduate level, similar to JD program in the United States. As to another group, candidates are from people who are working in courts, procuratorates or organs of civil affairs, public security, judicial administration and supervision. They are all part-time graduate students.

 

In addition, people who, through receiving higher legal education or self-study, have met the qualifications for legal academic degrees in terms of their educational level as prescribed by the State, may apply to legal degree-conferring bodies for the issue of appropriate legal degrees.

 

People who just graduated from specialized higher education schools that offer the special course education for academic qualifications can not obtain any law degree.

 

4.      The faculty

In general, Chinese citizens, who abide by the Constitution and laws, love legal education as a cause, have sound ideology and moral character, have completed LL.B. (undergraduate) or LL.M. (graduate) programs, have the necessary competence in legal education and teaching, and are considered qualified, may serve as teachers in higher legal education institutions. Ones, who have not completed LL.B. or LL.M. programs but have acquired a specialty through study, have passed national examinations for qualifications of teachers, and are considered qualified, may likewise serve as teachers in such institutions.

 

Apparently, in China, to obtain qualifications for a teacher in higher legal education institutions, one shall be a postgraduate or university graduate with a law degree of LL.B. or LL.M. With the rapid development of China’s higher legal education for academic qualifications and the return of many graduates with a law degree who studied abroad, at present, some universities require their teachers to have a doctoral degree.

 

Individuals from outside the territory of China, who meet the conditions prescribed by the State and have completed the necessary formalities, may teach in higher legal education institutions in China. Their lawful rights and interest in China shall be protected by the State.

 

A system of professional titles is instituted among teachers in China’s higher legal education institutions. The number of such titles in one higher legal education institutions is determined on the basis of the need of teaching, research and other tasks that are shouldered by the institutions. The professional titles of law teachers include as follows: (1) teaching assistant; (2) lecturer of law; (3) associate professor of law; (4) professor of law.

 

A reform of teacher appointment system is carrying out in China’s higher education institutions. So-called the principle of “establishing a teaching post according to the needs” and the principle of contract will be applied. In the near future, a person, having been evaluated as being qualified for holding a legal teaching post, shall be appointed by a higher legal education institutions according to the duties, requirements and tenure of office for the post. Appointment of law teachers shall be based on the principle of equality and voluntariness on both sides, and contracts of appointment shall be signed by presidents of higher education institutions and the teachers appointed.

 

5.      Curriculum

On the basis of the needs of teaching, China’s higher legal education institutions may act on their own in drawing up their teaching programs, compiling teaching materials and making arrangements for their teaching activities. Therefore, the higher legal education institutions determine their own curriculums. It is natural for different institutions to have different curriculums.

 

Generally, the curriculums are divided into required and selected courses in China’s higher legal education institutions. For example, in Wuhan University Law School, there are 15 required courses for LL.B. program. They are as follows:

(1)              Jurisprudence

(2)              Constitution

(3)              Administrative Law and Administrative Procedure

(4)              Chinese History of Legal System

(5)              Civil Law

(6)              Civil Procedure

(7)              Criminal Law

(8)              Criminal Procedure

(9)              Commercial Law

(10)                     Law of Intellectual Property

(11)                     Economic Law

(12)                     Public International Law

(13)                     Private International Law

(14)                     International Economic Law

(15)                     Environmental Law

Selected courses are mainly as follows:

(1)              Contract Law

(2)              Family Law

(3)              International Organization Law

(4)              International Trade Law

(5)              Judicial Systems and Legal Practice

(6)              WTO Law

(7)              International Investment Law

(8)              International Finance Law

(9)              Maritime Law

(10)                     Resolution of International Civil and Commercial Disputes

(11)                     Company Law

(12)                     Finance Law

(13)                     Tax Law

(14)                     Guarantee Law

(15)                     Law of Negotiable Instruments

(16)                     Criminology

(17)                     Science of Criminal Investigation

(18)                     Evidence

(19)                     Foreign Criminal Law

(20)                     Foreign History of Legal System

(21)                     Foreign History of Legal Thoughts

(22)                     Law of Science and Technology

(23)                     Legislative Science

(24)                     Foreign Constitutions

(25)                     Chinese History of Legal Thoughts

(26)                     Foreign Civil and Commercial Law

(27)                     Roman Law

(28)                     Basic Theory of Economic Law

(29)                     Insurance Law

(30)                     Legal Medicine (Forensic Medicine)

(31)                     International Criminal Law

(32)                     Arbitration Law

(33)                     International Human Right Law

(34)                     Law of Natural Resources

(35)                     Labor Law

(36)                     International Relations

(37)                     Law of the Europe Union

(38)                     Inter-regional Conflicts Law

(39)                     International Environmental Law

(40)                     Criminal Policy

(41)                     Clinical Program

(42)                     Legal Focuses and Jurisprudence Frontiers

 

6.      Problems of China’s legal education

At present, there are the following concrete problems in China’s legal problems:

 

(1)  The confusion of goal of legal education.

In the legal circle, people have different ideas on the goal of legal education. Some of them consider legal education as quality education, some as academic education, some as professional education.

 

(2)  Too much different levels and types of legal education.

Seeing that legal education institutions, there are higher legal education institutions (including regular course and special course legal education institutions), secondary legal education institutions, Administrative staff institutes of political science and law, radio-TV legal education institutions and other kinds of vocational or part-time legal education institutions. Seeing that the levels of legal education, there are secondary legal education, special course legal education, LL.B. programs, two-bachelor degrees programs, postgraduates without LL.M. programs, LL.M. programs, Doctor of Law programs and post-doctor of law programs. These situations make the goal and requirements legal education complicated and confused.

 

(3)  Deficiency in resources of legal education.

 

(4)  Rigidification of the courses to be offered.

The public courses to be offered and their content in China’s higher legal education institutions are guided under the teaching plan of the Ministry of Education. The institutions’ autonomy is very limited.

 

(5)  Simplification of teaching methods.

 

(6)  Division of legal education and legal profession.