文本与实践——近代中国的破产人权利保护

Text and Practice——The Protection of Bankrupt's Rights in Modern China

破产法经历了从惩罚主义到非惩罚主义、从完全清偿到债务免责的发展过程,演变出了保护破产人的功能,“破产”成为债务人的“权利”。自清末开始构建的近现代破产法律制度移植的是已经具有破产人权利保护属性的破产法,尤以1906年《破产律》和1935年《破产法》中规定的债务免责最为显著。然而,债权人群体的反对和拒不配合、司法机关对准予破产宣告的收紧以及地方从严纠办破产规范的出台,使得致力于保护破产人权利的法律施行起来困难重重。激进地保护破产人权利并将其著为固定律条的做法,与传统的偿债观念以及破产习惯中灵活多样的利益分配方式相抵牾,不仅难达预期目标,反而激发了债务人的逃废债意图。破产法对破产人的权利保护应当适度,并尽可能避免预设相对封闭的债务清理方案。

Bankruptcy law has gone through the development process from punitivism to non-punitivism,from full settlement to debt exemption,and evolved into the function of protecting the bankrupt,in other words bankruptcy became the debtor's right.The modern bankruptcy legal system constructed since the Late Qing Dynasty transplanted the bankruptcy law which already has the quality of protecting the rights of the bankrupts,especially for the debt exemption provisions in the Bankruptcy Law of 1906 and 1935.However,the opposition and refusal of creditors,the tightening of the judicial authority's approval of bankruptcy declaration and the promulgation of local regulations on strict handling of bankrupt debtors make it difficult to implement the law dedicated to protecting the bankrupts.Protecting the rights of the bankrupts radically and making it a mandatory rule contradicts the traditional concept of debt repayment and diversified interest distribution in bankruptcy customs,which not only fails to achieve the expected goal,but also stimulates the debtor's intention of evading debts.The bankruptcy law should appropriately protect the rights of the bankrupt,and try to avoid presetting a relatively fixed debt liquidation plan.