法治,抑或德治——兼论法律协调的基础

Ruling by Law or by Morals?——The Foundation of Coordination by Law

制度就可以被理解为关于如何协调分工的人们的知识的载体,而法律制度则是“无人管理的显性协调”方式。在市场经济中,法制协调的关键性作用在于促进契约的履行,从而提高人们对未来经济活动的预期。但是,由于契约的不完全性,单纯的法制协调存在着内在的局限性。实际上,法律具有两方面的含义:形式的和实质的,合理的法律要求形式方面的内容要与实质方面的内容相一致,而价值伦理的认同就是法律发挥有效协调作用的基础。

Institution can be comprehended as the carrier of knowledge that coordinates the work, while law system is the apparent way, which no man is in charge of, to coordinate the work. In market economy, the key role of coordination by law rests on promoting the implementation of contract and improving the anticipation. Nevertheless, sheer coordination by law has intrinsic shortage since contracts are often incomplete. In fact, law has two meanings: form and content, which should be consistent. Moreover, the identification of ethics must be the foundation for laws to exert its coordination role effectively.