4.The relationship between legal institution and litigation Are there inherent characteristics in a particular legal system which lead to litigiousness ? My reply is a negative one.Whether there is a charge to file a lawsuit and the low or high cost of a lawsuit have little relationship with the number of lawsuits. The ease or difficulty of securing a lawyer does not necessarily have a bearing on the number of lawsuits. During the middle1950’s when the P.R.of China had just established, the cost of a lawsuit was very low, virtually free of charge.During that period, the number of lawsuits was the smallest.During that period, the practice of seeking legal help from lawyers was tried out in few metropolitan areas and this did not cause a decrease in lawsuits.By the late 1970’s, the relative cost of a lawsuit increased in China, the lawyering institution was generally established and employing lawyer was easier than before, but lawsuits still increased a lot.This situation gave persuasive proof that it is difficult to find a change in the number of lawsuits only from the legal institution itself.In modern times, we have a great number of lawsuits in China, but it is not because citizens are litigious.We have the motto’s of‘bring no accusation to court even suffering exasperating injury’and‘one-year of litigation turns into ten-years of hostility’, which have not changed, but the number of lawsuit greatly increases.The reason for the increasing number of lawsuits is an economic one; it is not because of the changes in the legal institution.On the contrary, the increase and decrease of lawsuits cause the legal institution to make corresponding adjustments.Legalists thinkers said that if State government wants to be effective, the law should circle around crime; if governing is in conformity with the rule of the world, there will be credit.(From Works of Han Fei Tzu) Since our government pursued an Open and Reform policy, various kinds of eco- nomic components began to exist together.Because of the drive for material benefits, social inequities increase.If there is no reasonable and timely resolution to calm down these inequities, law-breaking and even crime are unavoidable.We had an old proverb in China, men will die for wealth, as birds for food, over-expanded selfish desire is the hotbed of law-breaking and crime.

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