An Analysis On The Principle Of Good Faith Of Civil Law

By studying the principle of good faith in the origin and its development course in the world, we can see that the Principle, although exists in all countries, is even differently practiced at different times within the same country. Hence it holds various status in different countries.With the development of our society, the principle of good faith is widely and deeply influencing us. As to the meaning and the nature of the Principle, different people have different understandings, which results in the current situation that it is still not recognized in the world scale. As the basic principle of the civil law, the principle of good faith is also a certain kind of moral law, while morality constantly changes with the social development, so are the scales that it affects. But morality is relatively stable and certain, so in a certain period of a country or a region, morality, other legal principles and some specific legal rules, will form a legal system. By experiencing specific rules, we can more comprehensively understand the content and characteristics of the principle of faith and realize that the Principle pursues virtual equality and justice.In order to better explain the principle of good faith, we should take such factors as its status, the relationship between it and other civil principles, its function and application, and our country's legal practice into consideration. As the direct reflection of the spirit of civil law and of the ruling class, the Principle, which is superior to other principles, hold the status of "imperial term". In the meantime, the Principle and other principles rely on each other, condition each other and supplement each other, jointly regulating the civil relations. To apply the principle of good faith is conditioned and requires to follow certain rules, which doesn't reach a unified agreement in the academic circle. The principle of good faith plays an important role in contract explanation, and its importance would be more significant with the normality frequency of market trade. The judicial practice of the Principle cannot do without judge's creative activity, but this does not mean that a judge may arbitrarily applying the principle of good faith, the judge applies the appropriate conditions should be consistent with the principles of good faith and abide by the rules. Judge's creative judicial activity is an important way of specifying the principle of faith. The application of the Principle requires the improvement of a judge's quality, giving full play to the social supervision and support.Based on such studying methods as historic analysis, function analysis and example-citing, the article aims to fully analyze the principle of good faith. Besides introduction and conclusion, the article mainly consists of five parts. Part one discusses the origin and developing course of the principle of good faith, aiming to put forward constructive advices for the Principle's development in China; Part two is about the definition and nature of the Principle; Part three tells about the general principles of the Principle; Part four analyzes the relationship between the Principle and other principles and its status, while the last part discusses the application and the judicial practice of the Principle. By completing this paper, the author hopes to further comprehend the Principle, to give full rein to its function, to defend judicial authority and credibility, and to make strict demands on judge's decision, aiming to adjust to the need of the constantly developing society, promote social harmony and stability and improve the whole society's legal sense.