司法的堕距:中国法治建设的社会学思考

On the Judicial Lag:Sociological Thoughts on the Construction of Rule of law in China

法律文本与法律实践之间存在着一定的差距,这种差距体现在法律知识与司法实践的张力空间之中,具体表现为"书本上的法"与"行动中的法"之间的脱节。司法堕距即指的是这一情形。"书本上的法"与"行动中的法"之间的差距本就孕育于西方的法治传统之中,我国在学习西方法律制度之时,不可避免地会将这一冲突移植至本土。立法的滞后性使得"书本上的法"逐渐失去对社会生活的控制,然而在司法实践中,真正发挥作用的是司法人员将"书本上的法"与具体的社会情境相结合所创制的"行动中的法"。产生司法堕距的根本原因,在于中西方社会环境与文化传统的差别,导致移植的法律在本土化适应的过程中产生新的矛盾,即外来文化与本土文化之间的冲突。

There is a certain gap between the legal text and legal practice,which is reflected in the tension space between legal knowledge and judicial practice,specifically manifested as the disjoint between"law in books"and"law in action".Judicial lag refers to this situation.The gap between"law in books"and"law in action"is born in the western tradition of rule of law.When China learns from the western legal system,it is inevitable to transplant this conflict to its own land.The lag of legislation makes the"law in books"gradually lose its control over social life.However,in judicial practice,what really plays a role is the"law in action"created by judicial personnel combining the"law in books"with the specific social situation.The primary cause of judicial lag lies in the differences between Chinese and western social environments and cultural traditions,which lead to new conflicts between foreign culture and local culture in the process of localization adaptation of transplanted laws.