Law refers to a system of behavioral norms formulated or recognized by the state and enforced through state power. It reflects the will of the ruling class determined by specific societal material conditions, defines rights and obligations, and aims to establish, protect, and develop social relations and order beneficial to the ruling class. Law can be understood broadly or narrowly. Broadly, it encompasses all normative documents; narrowly, it refers specifically to normative documents enacted by the National People's Congress (NPC) and its Standing Committee. Regulations denote normative documents formulated by state organs, such as administrative regulations issued by China's State Council and local regulations enacted by provincial, autonomous regional, and municipal people's congresses and their standing committees.

   As a vital component of the legal system, local regulations fundamentally differ from local government rules:

• First, their promulgating authorities differ;
• Second, their authority and social effects vary. Local government rules hold lower legal force than local regulations. Local regulations apply within their respective provinces/municipalities, with force subordinate to the Constitution, national laws, administrative regulations, and provincial/autonomous regional regulations.

   CnOpenData's Chinese Legal and Regulatory Database encompasses four modules: national laws, administrative regulations, local regulations, and judicial interpretations. It includes fields such as title, enacting body, legal nature, effective date, and full text. The data covers three legal validity statuses: effective, amended, and repealed.

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Time Coverage

1950–June 2024. Specific time ranges for different legal instruments are detailed in sub-tables.

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Data Scale

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Field Display

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Sample Data

Laws

Administrative Regulations

Local Regulations

Judicial Interpretations

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Relevant Literature

• Liu Yida, 2023: "Positioning of Supervisory Regulations in China’s Legal System," Administrative Law Review 2.
• Zhao Jianwen, 2010: "Status of International Treaties in China’s Legal System," Chinese Journal of Law 6.

Data Update Frequency

Annual updates