The Evolution of Contract Law in China: Convergence in Law But Divergence in Enforcement?

This chapter provides an overview of the contract law system in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The central theme of this chapter is that while the black letter contract law has indicated a trend of convergence moving towards some basic norms which appear in other countries’ contract laws and international conventions, enforcement of contract law shows a visible trend of moving towards a hybrid regime combining features of both formal and informal enforcement mechanisms. This paradigm of evolution reveals the intricacies and complexities in China’s contract law regime as well as rule of law movement in general. This chapter will demonstrate how this peculiar pattern of legal development has been formed and how it could inform our understanding of possibilities and ramifications of legal convergence and persistence in an increasingly globalized world.