会审公廨与中国法制进步——以一名美国律师的记录为视角

The Mixed Court of the International Settlement and the Improvement of Chinese Legal System

会审公廨是设立在租界内的中国司法机构,经历了中国从传统社会到近代社会的转型时期,其发展演变呈现出与时代的不同步,在中国传统司法体制内糅合了西方法律因素并最终对整个法治进程产生影响。虽然其根本目的是为了方便西方列强在华攫取利益和维护租界中的秩序,但通过一名美国律师的简短记录,我们可以窥斑见豹,再次从法理学角度认真思考该机构对我国法制进步的客观影响与积极意义。

The mixed court of the international settlement which was established in concessions was a kind of judicial department, and this kind of department underwent the period of transformation, which has made China shift from traditional society to modern society. The development and change of this kind of department which has made effect on the entire process of the rule of law presents the asynchronous trait of times, and it has mixed the western law into traditional judicial system in China. Although its primary purpose is to facilitate the western powers to seize benefits in China and maintain the order of concession, we can have a look at the short notes which were taken by a American lawyer, like peeping the spot to see the leopard, and once again, we must think about the objective influence and positive significance of this kind of judicial department from the angle of jurisprudence.