Abstract

China has a long history of legal tradition. Traditional Chinese legal philosophy played an important role in ancient Chinese society and even today it still has a strong influence. Actually, China is experiencing legal modernization, and we should pay attention to our local legal resources and take into account our legal heritage. Though China should learn from the experience of the West, it is also necessary to consider her conditions and reality, rather than following the West blindly. At first, the paper makes a general survey on legal thoughts of Confucianism, Legalism, and Taoism. After these preliminary remarks, the paper discusses the traditional Chinese legal philosophy and the process of China’s legal modernization.