On The Legal Character Of Urban Planning In China

In recent years, The academe has been focusing on the top issue of whether the urban planning has the legal effectiveness and what the legal character of it is ,which play a vital role in macro-economy adjustment. The point of view vary from one to the other, the legal science academe are participating in the discussion now. The practice departments also focus on it.The regulatory plan played the key role in our three–administrative-levels urban planning system. It was brought by the reform of the land use system in china and made good contribution to the system in the beginning. However, it encountered with the disadvantages when the economic reform advanced, the power is not separated, the procedural control is weak and the discretion power is not under control.The situation appeared early and extremely in Shenzhen. Subsequently, the city tried to reform the system in order to solve the problem. They confirmed the reform objective-controlling the planning discretion, learning the experiences of overseas countries and regions-especially Hongkong. Then they constituted the Urban Planning Ordinance to form the new system-statutory plan system.In modality, there are some difference among the statutory plan system, the regulatory plan system and the statutory plan system of Hongkong, especially in the procedure. The statutory plan system established the urban planning board system and the citizen participation legal system. It controlled the formation of the statutory plan and brought it legality.Substantively, the statutory plan has affected the private right and obligation; has the legal effect on administrative action and judgment. The legalization of citizen participation and procedure bring the effectiveness to it. Consequently it plays a role as law substantively. It provided the proof for researching the legal character of the statutory plan and the urban planning.The formation of the statutory plan and its'legal character will give birth to the right protection system and judicial review. We should reform our judicial review system on administrative action. Moreover we should establish and deepen the citizen participation and procedure system in order to make sure the interest of all parties have the opportunity to express, debate and compromise. Therefore the urban planning will have more legality and rationality.