合宪性解释在我国法院的实践

Judicial Practice of Constitutionally Faithful Interpretation in China

我国法院尽管不以宪法作为直接的裁判依据,但法院对个案正义的追求还是为合宪性解释提供了相当大的存在空间。立法具有一般性,难以顾及社会生活的诸多特殊之处,因此难免在适用时发生个案裁判不公的问题。法院出于个案正义的考虑,会在裁判中对法律进行文义转换,或者放弃对法律的通常解释而选择一种不常见的解释方案。这个过程实质上就是合宪性解释的过程。最高人民法院虽然不赞成司法裁判直接援引宪法,但裁判过程中对法律文义的转换或者解释方案的选择,在客观上需要法院以宪法作为论证依据。诉诸宪法毕竟要优于诉诸公平正义的抽象观念。通过将个案正义的判断问题,转换为法律在适用过程中是否与宪法相冲突的问题,合宪性解释既能为司法造法提供宪法上的正当依据,也能对其予以宪法上的控制,有助于裁判的规范化。合宪性解释还能弥补我国合宪性审查体制的制度性缺漏。

Although courts in China do not cite constitutional norms as the binding authority in their judicial opinions, the pursuit of justice in individual cases has provided ample space for courts to ac- commodate constitutionally faithful interpretation （verfassungskonforine Gesetzesauslegung ）. The generality of statutes makes it difficult to take every aspect of social life into account, and this may re- sult in injustice in individual cases. Court will always transform the text of a facially unjust statute or abandon the regular interpretations and choose an unusual interpretation in their pursuit of justice in individual cases. Such a judicial process is essentially a process of constitutionally faithful interpreta- tion. Although the Supreme People＇ s Court disapproves of the citing of constitutional norms by inferi- or courts in their judicial opinions, the transformation of the text of a facially unjust statute or the choice among several interpretations in the judicial process naturally demands inferior courts to cite constitutional norms as the authoritative justification. Resorting to constitutional norms is better than resorting to an abstract concept of justice. By transforming justice in individual cases into a question of whether the statute as-applied conflicts with the Constitution, constitutionally faithful interpretation can provide constitutional justification for judicial law-making and at the same time control the process ~f judicial law-making.. Constitutionally faithful interpretation could also make up the institutional de- ？iciency in the constitutional review system in Chin~