法的时间效力界限与法的稳定性——以德国民法为研究视角

法的时间效力问题,简言之要解决的是,如果一个时间段上的法律关系跨越新旧法律的交替,那么旧法所规定的法律效力是否、在何种程度上继续发生效力;或者是否应该以形式上的时间点为界限,让旧法上的法律后果丧失效力,依照新法重新做出安排。萨维尼有关法的时间效力理论就法的时间效力冲突等问题进行了详尽的分析,在德国民法上,针对不同的法律关系诸如物权、债权以及婚姻家庭关系等,在法的时间效力方面设定了不同的规则。随着我国《物权法》、《侵权责任法》等几部重要法律的颁布,施行过程中新旧法律冲突的问题不断出现,目前中国民法典的制定也已经提上日程,民事法律的时间效力问题将会是立法者和学者都无法回避的重要问题之一,德国法的相关理论与规定可资借鉴。

The Delimitation of Temporal Sphere of Validity of Law and the Stability of Law

The intertemporal problem of law relates to the delimitation of law’s validity in time.In brief,it tries to determine whether old law is still in force and to what extent,it continues to be in force when a legal relationship in a certain period of time exists at the time when new law replaces old law.In another word,it relates to whether one may take the formal time point as the delimitation to invalidate the legal effect of old law and thus,rearrange a legal relationship according to new law.The theory of law’s validity in time elaborated by Savigny involves detailed analysis of issues such as the intertemporal conflict of law.Taking into consideration various legal relations including right in rem,creditor’s right and marriage and family relations,the German Civil Code has established different rules in relation to law’s validity in time.With the promulgation of several important laws in China,for example,property law and torts law,more and more intertemporal problems have cropped up in the course of implementation of them.At present,the enacting of civil code has been placed on the agenda in China,the law’s validity in time,or the intertemporal conflict of laws,therefore,will be one of the important issues our legislators and scholars have to face unavoidably.