Definition

The role of mandatory rules is an issue that has excited much attention in the private international law academy.Yet for all that attention,it is not clear that a fully realized doctrine of mandatory rules has emerged.In spite of the lack of a uniform definition of mandatory rules under the context of private international law,the author believes that its meaning can be summarized as follows:

A mandatory rule is an imperative provision of law which must be applied to an international civil relationship irrespective of the law that governs that relationship.To put it another way,mandatory rules of law aim at protecting the fundamental social and economic interests of a society which are so commanding that they must be applied even if the general body of law to which they belong is not competent by application of the relevant rule of conflict of laws.It is the imperative nature per se of such rules that make them applicable.One is thus led to conclude that there is an “approach to mandatory rules of law” different from the classical method of conflict of laws.1(https://www.daowen.com)

The concept of mandatory rules has only recently been introduced into Chinese private international law from Europe; therefore,a brief review of the development and evolution of the concept in Europe is both beneficial and necessary.