Socialist law

Until recently, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the USSR) and some other countries proclaimed that socialism was producing an entirely new form of law, not to be judged by or even (A). This view was said to be the scientific conclusion of a Marxist analysis. The elimination of the USSR as a state was followed by collapse of the newly build legal system at the end of the 20th century. The USSR's peaceful disintegration into 15 sovereign states has provoked much activity in fashioning new structures. Most of the states by now have (B) and are drafting the rest of the legal system.

One more example of applying socialist law is China. From its inception in 1949, the People's Republic of China's declared aim was (C). It abrogated all earlier legislation and during the next decade much of the formal law was (D). But the 'Great Leap Forward' of 1958 emphasized ideological leadership, law was (E) the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), and it was not until the 1980s that something resembling a recognizable legal system began to appear. Under the 1982 Constitution China - despite its size - is not a federation. The People's Congress is the named legislator and the 'executive' is the State Council, although (F) with the Chinese Communist Party. The pre-Cultural Revolution legal structure has been partly resurrected, and a legal framework of codes enacted. The Basic Principles of Civil Law contain many provisions that would be familiar to Western jurists. The actual functioning of the system, however, is affected by the persistent attitude (G) to the decisions of central and local political authorities.

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1. Why did the socialist countries proclaim that they were producing absolutely new form of law?

2. What was this form of law different from? And why it was so important?

3. Who was the founder of this theory? What other scientific conclusions did he make?

4. What does “peaceful disintegration” mean? What countries appeared after this process?

5. What are the activities of former socialist countries concerning their legal systems?

6. Why do you think the Chinese legal system has provisions similar to western legislations?

5. Прочитайте следующий текст и ответьте на вопрос: почему право стран северной Европы выделяется в отдельную правовую систему?