Civil Law (Fifth Edition)

Name: Civil Law (Fifth Edition)
ISBN: 9787301229477

魏振瀛Peking University Press · ChinaAug 2025

3.9

Word count: 660K words
Chapters: 66
ISBN: 9787301229477

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Summary

As a national-level planned textbook for higher education under the 11th Five-Year Plan, a course textbook for the 21st century, and a core course textbook for law majors in Chinese universities, Civil Law (5th Edition) is based on China's current civil statutes and regulations, including the General Principles of Civil Law, the Property Law, the Contract Law, the Succession Law, and the Tort Liability Law. It closely integrates the judicial interpretations of the Supreme People's Court, draws on foreign and Taiwan-region civil legislation and judicial practice, incorporates new achievements in domestic and international civil law research, links theory with practice, and systematically discusses the basic theories, basic institutions, and basic knowledge of civil law. In content, it strives for a comprehensive and accurate exposition of current civil legislation; in theory and system, it strives to meet the development needs of the new century.

Editor's review

As the fifth edition of a national-level planned textbook, this book maintains a high standard in systematic completeness and normative accuracy. Its outstanding value lies in its close alignment with current civil legislation such as the General Principles of Civil Law, the Property Law, the Contract Law, the Succession Law, and the Tort Liability Law, and its deep integration of the judicial interpretations of the Supreme People's Court, which effectively connects theoretical exposition with judicial practice. At the same time, the book appropriately draws on foreign legislative experience and new achievements in civil law research, maintains a comparative law perspective, and helps readers understand the legal logic behind institutions. The entire book is structured around basic theories, basic institutions, and basic knowledge; its discussion is clearly organized and its concepts are clearly defined, making it suitable as a foundation for introductory study of civil law and for organizing its system. For readers who need to systematically master China's civil legal norms and build a knowledge framework for this branch of law, this book provides a solid textual basis; in classroom teaching, it can also serve as a main textbook to accompany case discussions. The updates in the fifth edition keep the content in step with current legislation and judicial practice, reducing the problem of normative disconnect often found when consulting older editions.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Undergraduate law students and students in top-up degree programs who need to systematically study the civil law system and basic institutions
Candidates preparing for the legal professional qualification examination or graduate entrance examinations in law, who use it to build a knowledge framework
People without a law background but engaged in legal or compliance work who need to understand civil legal norms
Legal practitioners who want to quickly review the correspondence between current civil legislation and judicial interpretations

Not a good fit for

Legal researchers seeking in-depth monographic studies or cutting-edge academic debate
General readers who only want to learn techniques for handling a specific civil dispute
Casual readers who prefer case-based storytelling and have low tolerance for textbook formats

Reading tips

First read the table of contents and the introduction to each part to build an overall framework of property rights, claims, succession, torts, and other sections, then read each chapter closely.
After finishing each chapter, annotate it against the original text of current statutes and judicial interpretations, matching the textbook discussion with the normative texts.
Practice with civil law cases from past legal qualification or graduate entrance examinations to test the accuracy of your understanding of basic institutions.
Take brief notes on the parts of the textbook that involve foreign experience, distinguishing what is current legal provision from what is comparative law reference.

About the publisher

Peking University Press China · Founded in 1979

Peking University Press is a comprehensive university press whose publishing areas cover classical literature, popular science, social culture, world history, Western philosophy, and culture. Its catalogue contains 6,031 titles, with representative books including A Dream of Red Mansions, Relativity: The Special and General Theory (15th Edition) (with Einstein's classic papers on unified field theory and other topics), Elements, Conics, The Aristocratic Families of the Eastern Jin, The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume I), The Philosophy of Mythology (Volume II), and The Origin of Continents and Oceans. Representative authors include Cao Xueqin, Zhou Ruchang, Albert Einstein, Euclid, Apollonius, Tian Yuqing, Schelling, and Xian Gang. The press has developed distinctive strengths in classical Chinese literature and in the translation of Western philosophical classics, while also covering scientific classics and social and cultural studies. As public information is limited, this description is based only on the books in the catalogue and offers no further extrapolation.

版权信息
内容简介
作者简介
Abstract
Brief Introduction of the Authors
第一编总论
第一分编绪论
第一章民法概述
第二章民法的基本原则
第三章民事法律关系
第二分编民事法律关系主体
第四章自然人
第五章法人
第六章非法人组织
第三分编民事法律关系客体
第七章民事法律关系客体的种类
第四分编民事法律关系变动
第八章民事行为
第九章代理
第十章诉讼时效、除斥期间与期限
第二编物权
第十一章物权总论
第十二章所有权
第十三章共有
第十四章用益物权
第十五章担保物权
第十六章占有
第三编债权
第一分编债权总论
第十七章债的概述
第十八章债的类型
第十九章债的履行
第二十章债的保全与担保
第二十一章债的转移与消灭
第二分编债权分论
第二十二章合同概述
第二十三章合同的订立
第二十四章双务合同履行中的抗辩权
第二十五章合同的变更与解除
第二十六章缔约过失责任与违约责任
第二十七章各种合同
第二十八章无因管理之债
第二十九章不当得利之债
第四编继承权
第三十章继承权概述
第三十一章法定继承
第三十二章遗嘱继承、遗赠与遗赠扶养协议
第三十三章遗产的处理
第五编人身权
第三十四章人身权概述
第三十五章人格权
第三十六章身份权
第六编侵权责任
第三十七章侵权责任概述
第三十八章侵权行为的归责原则
第三十九章一般侵权行为的构成要件
第四十章侵害财产权与人身权的行为
第四十一章侵权责任方式与侵权责任的承担
第四十二章数人侵权行为与责任
第四十三章各类侵权责任
缩略语
第五版后记
第四版后记
第三版后记
第二版后记
第一版后记

FAQ

What are the main updates in the fifth edition compared with previous editions?

According to the publication information, the fifth edition continues the approach of basing the text on current civil statutes and regulations and the judicial interpretations of the Supreme People's Court, and incorporates new achievements in civil law research. Because the specific revision details require consulting the copyright page or preface, readers are advised to read the fifth edition preface first after obtaining the book to learn about this edition's explanations of normative updates and content adjustments.

Can someone without a legal background read this textbook directly?

Yes, but it requires some patience. This book is intended for core courses for law majors in higher education institutions and is conceptually dense. Readers with no background can first use a concise introductory civil law book to learn basic terminology, then use this book as the main text for systematic study; when encountering abstract concepts, understanding them together with the original statutory text will be more effective.

Are the legal documents cited in the book still in force?

This book is written on the basis of the General Principles of Civil Law, the Property Law, the Contract Law, the Succession Law, the Tort Liability Law, and other laws. Readers should note that China's civil legislation has since undergone important developments; when reading, they should study in comparison with currently effective civil legal norms, treat the textbook as a reference for principles and system, and rely on the latest legal texts for specific provisions.

Is this book suitable for preparing for the legal professional qualification examination?

It can be used as a reference book for the civil law knowledge framework, but the legal qualification examination has its own syllabus and scope, and this book is not an exam-preparation guide. It is advisable to use exam textbooks and past papers as the main line and use this book to deepen understanding of basic institutions and theories; using the two together is more efficient.

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About the author

魏振瀛 Author

Wei Zhenying is an author in the field of Chinese legal textbook writing. Publicly available personal information about him is limited: his birth year, native place, education, and professional positions are not clearly documented, so his academic career cannot be described in detail. Judging from the works held in the library, the fourth and fifth editions of Civil Law that he co-authored are civil law textbooks, commonly categorized under examinations and law, which indicates that his writing serves the practical needs of law courses and exam preparation. Textbooks of this kind usually follow the framework of current civil law institutions, proceeding from general principles to specific parts in a clear, standardized style that helps readers systematically grasp basic civil law concepts and rules. The coexistence of two editions also suggests that the book has been used repeatedly in teaching and has a certain continuity. Overall, Wei Zhenying's contribution lies mainly in compiling and organizing civil law textbooks, and his influence is reflected more through classroom teaching and exam reading than through specialized academic monographs.