Like Throwing an Egg against a Stone? Administrative Litigation in the People’s Republic of CHina

On April 4, 1989, the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) passed the Administrative Litigation Law (ALL). This law allows PRC citizens to sue government officials who violate the law in the course of administrative agency activity. The possibility that millions of government officials may be forced to defend their actions in court represents a sharp departure from traditional Chinese views toward the relationship among government, courts, and law. For example, the ALL may expand judicial author- ity, curb administrative discretion, and provide important new procedural rights to natural and legal persons in China. This article will examine the PRC administrative litigation sys- tem which was modeled after other legal systems, but still embodies distinctive features of China’s current political structure. The first section outlines the historical background of administrative litigation in China, while the second section analyzes the ALL and traces its legislative history.