This brief advances two main theses. Firstly, that the perception that China’s legal system deteriorated between 1998 and 2004 is incorrect. Secondly, that it is too early to conclude that China is trapped in transition.

This brief presents an alternative view to Minxin Pei, arguing that while China faces daunting challenges, it has also undertaken significant institutional reforms.

China’s economic transition is not ‘trapped’. Instead, China has the capacity to move forward to a more sophisticated and equitable economy.

This policy brief argues that Minxin Pei’s China’s Trapped Transition: The Limits of Developmental Autocracy contains a number of useful insights into the political economy of contemporary China.