The three myths of tort law in the Chinese Civil Code

This article raises three doctrinal uncertainties within Chinese tort law upon the enactment of Chinese Civil Code. These myths led to difficulties in understanding Chinese tort law. More specifically, it is unclear what is the exact scope of rights protected under tort law, if personality rights claim is an independent basis of claim and when and to what extent liability in equity, special liability without fault, can be imposed. These three myths came from three different root causes, namely: the incoherence in legal transplants, the practical implications in having an independent personality rights law outside torts, the clash between commutative justice, the foundation of Western tort law and distributive justice, the bedrock of Chinese legal tradition.