Judicial reform has been one of the important social topics in China in recent years.After speeches by state and Party leaders,lengthy articles by academics,endless studies and research,and innumerable reform measures in the judiciary,it seems that all that can be written has been written,all that can be said has been said,and all that can be done has been done.Yet,in the wake of such tremendous efforts,the level of public satisfaction with the results of judicial reform is quite low and disappointment often surpasses expectations.As a result,some people believe that the fountain of judicial reform is exhausted,and to them,the reformers and scholars should change course and try to find the next hot spot of reform for governing the country according to law.This,of course,is not advisable.To achieve the constitutional goal of building a socialist rule-of-law country,a modernized judicial system is indispensable.This is not merely a theme in the study of jurisprudence,but also the logic of the concept of the rule of law itself.Therefore,though the road of reform may be hard and tortuous,we have no choice but to charge ahead.Judicial reform is a long-term task,not a single action that is clearly defined.The Chinese society is developing and changing.So the judicial system that is charged with the responsibility of maintaining social justice must be well adapted to the developments and changes.This paper will take a mission as to do a bold review for the social background of judicial reform,the achievements made since 1980’s,to explore issues like the contradictions and difficulties in further reform,and most importantly,to re-affirm an ideal judicial power suited to the needs of China’s development in the new millennium.
