The Recent Codification of the Chinese Civil Code (CCC) as ‘A Generation of High-Tech Era’ Civil Code: History, Innovations, and Key Lessons for Ethiopian ‘Old Generation’ Civil Code

Abstract

The Chinese People’s National Congress gathering during the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020 decided the adoption of the Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China. This was a milestone achievement for the Chinese People and the government. The civil code of China is the only first code for the country that strongly believes to have a continental legal system. From the perspective being new at the moment, the codification instigates academics and researchers to review, analyze, and compare the newly adopted Chinese civil code. The codification history of the Chinese civil code is not a one-time victory. It is hundreds of years' dream of the Chinese people and the government of the People’s Republic of China with the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. This paper tried to re-vitalize the episodes and development of the Chinese codification history of the civil code. The paper finds out that the reform and opening of China is the main catalyst for this last finish with the high political commitment of its leadership. The Chinese civil code codification is not a mere codification. It introduces innovations of the time, that is ‘high-tech era’ civil code of the generation and practical problem-solving. Besides, the paper tried to assess the present status of the ‘old’ civil code of Ethiopia and concluded that it is possible to get many important takeaways from the Chinese civil code in the effort of re-codification.