The Fourth Plenary Session of the Eighteenth Central Committee of the CPC

It was convened in Beijing from October 20 to 23, 2014. The Plenary Session mainly studied a number of major issues in comprehensively promoting the rule of law. The Plenary Session heard and discussed Xi Jinping's Work Report entrusted by the Central Political Bureau, and considered and adopted the “Decision of the CPC Central Committee on Several Major Issues Concerning the Comprehensive Advancement of the Rule of Law”. Xi Jinping addressed a statement to the Plenary Session on the "Decision (Discussion Draft)".

The Plenary Session pointed out that in the face of the new situation and new tasks, it is necessary to comprehensively follow the rule of law and better play the leading and regulatory role of the rule of law. The Plenary Session recommended for comprehensively advancing the rule of law, and pointed out that the overall objective is to build a socialist rule of law system with Chinese characteristics and build a socialist state under the rule of law to achieve scientific legislation, strict law enforcement, impartial justice, and universal compliance with the law, and to promote the modernization of the national governance system and ruling capacity of the Party.

To achieve this overall goal, it must be adhered to the leadership of the CPC, be adhered to the main position of the people, be adhered to the equality of all under the law, be adhered to the rule of law and rule by morality, and be adhered to the reality of China. The Plenary Session emphasized that the leadership of the Party is the most essential trait of socialism with Chinese characteristics, is the most fundamental guarantee of the socialist rule of law. The Party's leadership to implement the whole process and all aspects of the rule of law, is the basic experience of China's socialist rule of law building.

The Plenary Session specified the major tasks of comprehensively promoting the rule of law, which is, to improve the Constitution as the core of the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics, to strengthen the implementation of the Constitution; to further promote the rule of law, to accelerate the building of the rule of law government; to ensure fair justice, to improve judicial accountability; to strengthen the concept of the rule of law for all people, to promote the building of a rule of law society; advance the rule of law personnel; strengthen and improve the Party's overall promotion of the rule of law leadership.