Study On The Validity Of Lending Contracts In The Qing Dynasty

The effectiveness of lending contract is an indispensable part of the contract.The question of whether the lending contract is effective or not is actually related to the issue of legal value judgment,its focus is on judging whether lending contracts comply with the spirit and regulations of the law and whether it can be legally effective.During the Qing Dynasty,the private sector used more autonomy in private law.When a person with funds or financial needs chooses private lending,the lending contract has legal effect between the parties without violating the mandatory provisions of the state law and its legislative purpose,state recognition and protection.The lending contract has legal effect,which is conducive to stabilizing the lending relationship and stabilizing social order.Although the theory of the validity of the contract and the formulation of the legislation are absent from the Qing Dynasty and there is no concept of “contract validity” and the contract validity requirement system like the modern civil law,however,the provisions of the lending contract are essentially evaluations of the validity of the contract in the law,some of which are in line with the provisions of the effectiveness of the modern lending contract system.For example,according to the laws of the Qing Dynasty,the state adopts the interest rate criterion of 3% per month or 36% per year to divide the effectiveness of lending contracts into two regions.One is the effective area,that is,the judicial protection zone,as long as the monthly interest does not exceed 3%.Or 36% per annum,the state recognizes that the use of loans to take interest is legal.The other is an ineffective area,that is,private interest loans that exceed 3% of monthly interest or 36% of annual interest are part of usury,and are not protected by law.According to the current regulations on China's private lending,the current interest rate standard for China's implementation of interest rates is limited to 36% per annum,which is also an invalid area for dividing the validity of the contract according to this standard,that is,the interest rate of more than 36% of the annual interest rate agreed upon by both parties is invalid.The court supported the borrower's appeal to the court for the return of this part of interest already paid.The coincidence of history in this respect not only shows that the existence and existence of the contract validity system is not accidental,it is inevitability and rationality.The effectiveness of the private loan contract in the Qing Dynasty is the recognition and regulation of the meaning of the parties' contract by the state law.The expression of the meaning of the parties is the source of the effectiveness of the contract.The role of national law in effectiveness should be reflected in external recognition and regulation.This is a result of the conflict and balance between the freedom of contract and state intervention with judicial coercion as the main means,which reflects the mandatory intervention of the public power of the state over private rights.Therefore,when assessing the legal regulation of the effectiveness of the Qing Dynasty's lending contract,it should be combined with the party's intention and legal recognition and intervention.The characteristics of the legal regulation of lending contract in the Qing Dynasty have the following characteristics: it restricts the private lending of special subjects only;it is not easy to judge the specific legal norms that adjust the effectiveness of the lending contract;The guarantee of the effectiveness of lending contracts and behavioral penalties are criminal,civil,and administrative.An effective lending contract consists in that the parties' consent is in line with national will and social interests,the meaning conferred by the state on the parties is binding,the parties are required to strictly perform the contract,otherwise they can rely on the state's coercive power to allow the parties to perform their contractual obligations and bear the liability for breach of contract.Invalid lending contracts are based on the lending contract that the parties have agreed to achieve,which violates the mandatory provisions of force law and does not require legal effect for the parties.The existence of a large number of effective lending contracts in grassroots societies of the Qing dynasty plays an important role in meeting the needs of urban and rural residents in daily life,commodity circulation,and social reproduction,promoting the economic development of Qing dynasty,and stabilizing social order.The rulers of the Qing Dynasty believed that the issue of private lending was not important and did not require excessive interference from the state.It should respect the freedom of private lending.Even if there are cases where loan contracts such as usury are invalid,as long as they do not threaten their dominance and do not waver social economic order,they should conform to the habits and concepts of private lending.They also believed that blindly implementing the practice of cracking down on ineffective private lending,making lenders unprofitable.Economically embarrassed people have nowhere to turn to loans for help,affecting their normal lives and production.This obstructs private lending and increases the burden on the country.In this regard,the Qing Dynasty “muted” the Qing Law in some supplementary provisions,the official attitude became tolerant and not demanding,and the effectiveness of the contract was obfuscated,that is,the boundary between legality and illegality or even crime was blurred,and the standard was lowered.The lending contract originally supposed to be invalid has become mostly effective.This practice of the Qing dynasty made it difficult to curb the growing high-income loans.In the end,it has not only failed to establish a long-term stable social and economic order,but has also caused the country to lose its ability to control the economy.Its political and social development has been severely affected.