The Legal Attributes of Electronic Data and the Positioning of Data in Civil Law

There is little fundamental research in civil law theory on the relationship between computer data and goods(objects)and property under civil law.Existing judgments on online civil disputes and current theoretical research have tended to process electronic data as an object or property in isolation.But electronic data is not specific and independent;it does not fall under intangibles,nor can it be classified as an object with civil rights content.It has no independent economic value,and trading in data is constrained by its information content.Moreover,the realization of its value is dependent for protection on data security and self-control,so it cannot easily be regarded as property.Since electronic data is not an object,contracts for big data transactions can readily be defined as data service contracts,but given the uncertainty of the entity in question,the problem of externalities and the lack of a monopoly,it is not easy to realize data rights.Electronic data has the essential character of instrumental neutrality,and there are limits to the law’s imposition on it of regulatory functions.Online civil disputes can be divided into the instrumental and the virtual,used respectively as general tort remedy and as tort remedy for infringement of laws protecting others.

Research on the Legal Attributes and Values of Forensic Testimony in Criminal Proceedings from the Perspective of Legal Norms

From the perspective of legal norms, the legal attributes of forensic testimony in the course of criminal proceedings are manifested in two forms： one is the collection of evidence; the other is the exercise of power. However, the values residing in these two legal attributes are not the same. The former emphasizes ＂justice,＂ and the latter, ＂efficiency.＂ An analysis of the legal norms governing forensic testimony in different periods shows that forensic testimony in criminal proceedings is gradually shifting from a pattern dominated by the exercise of power to one characterized by the collection of evidence. However, a genuine return to the essential character of forensic testimony as the collection of evidence must be premised on a change in the value orientation of the Criminal Procedure Law, that is, on a change from ＂efficiency＂ to ＂justice.＂

On the Legal Attributes of Digital Currency

Digital currency has been widely used ever since the concept of Bitcoin was formulated.It uses blockchains as its underlying technical support and is characterized by decentralization,programmability,and security verification based on the principles of cryptology.Generally speaking,theories on the legal attributes of digital currency regard it either as nonmonetary property or as currency.The former theory can be subdivided into theories on digital currency as commodity,as securities or as data.All of these subdivisions present insurmountable theoretical difficulties and practical obstacles.If we return to the substantive nature of currency as a generally accepted accounting symbol,it can be seen that currency issuance by the state or a private bank is simply a means of building currency credit rather than a necessary condition.Unlike traditional currency,digital currency relies on blockchain technology to complete the construction of decentralized currency credit.This has resulted in a new theory of currency based on the theory of digital currency.On the one hand,it offers a jurisprudential foundation for the construction of the quasi-currency attributes of digital currency;on the other,it provides a theoretical basis for the gradual improvement of digital currency legislation.We can first determine the legal attributes of digital currency as a quasi-currency and then confirm its legal position when the time is ripe.We need to confirm the legal status of digital currency as a quasi-currency through legislation,and use this as a logical starting point for the construction of a series of legal systems for digital currency as a quasi-currency.Digital currency can easily be used as a tool for crime or for evading financial controls;therefore,we need to determine a regulatory body and formulate regulatory rules.