Domestic-law research
The Institute of Law publishes scholarship and activities across fields including constitutional and administrative law, civil law, criminal law, economic law, legal history and other domestic-law subjects.
01Position in the system
A research institute within CASS's social-and-law division
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences lists the Institute of Law and Institute of International Law as distinct institutions within its social-and-law division. Their shared official legal portal publishes institute information, researcher profiles, research outputs, academic activities, journals, legal education, library resources and international exchange materials. Researchers should identify which institute, author and publication is responsible for a particular item rather than citing CASS generically.
What it doesLegal research institute.
When it mattersSecondary academic sources and legislative commentary — not a filing venue.
02Jurisdiction
What this institution contributes to legal research
Use the institute's own publication metadata to identify the author, research unit, journal and date.
Separate international-law institution
CASS lists the Institute of International Law separately. Materials on international law should be attributed to the responsible institute, journal or researcher shown on the source page.
Publications and research discovery
The shared portal provides researcher profiles, research outputs, academic events, journals, education and library entry points useful for locating scholarship and institutional context.
•Practical scenarios
Questions that change the research route
Use these examples to identify what must be checked before treating the institution as the correct forum.
| Situation | Why it matters | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| A researcher finds commentary on the China Law portal | The portal hosts material from more than one CASS legal institute | Named author, institute affiliation, original publication, date and whether the item is commentary or an official legal text. |
| A page discusses a legislative development | Institute scholarship can provide analysis but is not the enacted instrument | Verify the proposition against the official legislation, judicial interpretation or regulator source. |
| A source is attributed only to CASS | That label may be too broad for reliable citation | Identify the Institute of Law, Institute of International Law, journal, research unit or individual scholar responsible. |
03Official resources
Research and institutional resources
Start with primary institutional sources. Verify service links and procedural status before relying on a filing path.
05Related legal concepts
Build the vocabulary around your research
Short, practical definitions for concepts most likely to appear alongside this institution.
01
Research tag
Legal scholarship
Research and analysis that may explain law or policy but should be distinguished from binding primary authority.
02
Research tag
03
Institutional attribution
Identifying the responsible institute, author, journal and publication date instead of citing an umbrella organization alone.
Primary legal source
The official legislation, judicial document or administrative material against which commentary should be checked.
06Primary sources
How this entry was source-reviewed
The review date describes when the listed primary sources were checked. It is not a guarantee that jurisdiction remains unchanged after that date.
CASS organization directoryOfficial placement of the Institute of Law and Institute of International Law within CASS.
Open source
China Law portalOfficial institute information, researcher, publication, journal and activity navigation.
Open source
Reference boundary
Institute analysis is not binding law.
Use CASS scholarship for context and research discovery, then verify legal propositions against the current primary source.