On The Perfection Of Punitive Damages Legislation In China

The punitive damages, which once was booming in ancient times, faced the extremely different fate in morden two law systems. Since the last century, when the countries of the common law was absorbed in the punitive damages system reform, the countries of the civil law have paid more attention to the research and discussion in the punitive damages, and some of them accepted it in legislation. In our country, the discussion about punitive damages had not been interrupted since the double damages was first established in the'Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of Consumers'. With the further development of our democratic processes, for the requirements on promoting the construction of the rule of law, remeding the defect on legal system, dealing with the crisis of good faith and encouraging the action for protecting rights, the establishment and perfection of the punitive damages system in China is sorely needed. This article takes multiple methods such as historical analysis, comparative analysis, goal analysis and economic analysis, to analyse the necessity of the establishment and perfection of the punitive damages system in China, discuss the rationality of the punitive damages system and the property of punitive damages responsibility, give author's suggestions based on learning from the foreign theory and practice.This article can be divided into four parts besides the incipit and the conclusion. In the incipit, we introduce the development of the punitive damages in China, point out the significance of the research of punitive damages. In the first part, we analyse the necessity of the establishment of the punitive damages system in China, which includes the requirements on promoting the construction of the rule of law, remeding the defect on legal system, dealing with the crisis of good faith and encouraging the action for protecting rights. In the second part, we observe the current rules in China, and points out the limitations such as the narrow scope of application and the inappropriate damages amount. In the third part, we disscuss the reasonable basis of the punitive damages system, point out that it reflects the integration of public law and private law. We also refute those opinions in which the punitive damages may be illegal profit, bring excessive litigation, block economic development, or shift the risk. We assert that punitive damages responsibility is a particular type of the civil liabilities for its public-law property. In the fourth part, we give our advices about the perfection of punitive damages legislation in China in aspects of the applied scope, selection of legislative mode and the amount of compensation.