The Concept of Authoritarian Legality: The Chinese Case

Abstract

While the law serves both the role of limiting state power and enhancing state powers in both democracies and authoritarian states, the use of law to enhance and legitimize state power and to control society is often regarded as the defining feature of authoritarianism. This chapter uses the Chinese example to identity the core features of authoritarian legality and to discover authoritarian legality's wider and more nuanced spectrum and lawyers.