On the morning of December 15, 2025, an academic lecture themed "Judges Should Be Thought Assistants to Legislators" was held in Conference Room 434, Xingmin Building, Xianlin Campus of our university. The lecture was given by Professor Shi Tongbiao from Renmin University of China Law School, presided over by Professor Sun Wenkai from our college, and Professor He Baisheng served as a discussant. Undergraduates, graduate students, and doctoral candidates attended the lecture.

At the beginning of the lecture, Professor Shi Tongbiao pointed out that a positive interactive relationship should be established between judges and legislators. Judges should not only discover and reflect problems, but also commit to solving practical issues, responding to the appeals of the parties and providing references for legislators to improve rules. He stated that in the absence of clear legal basis, judicial practice in China often responds with judicial suggestions, but this form cannot fundamentally solve problems and lacks legal binding force. In contrast, Western legal theory and judicial practice tend to favor judges playing the role of legislators in adjudication, which not only effectively resolves the difficulties faced by citizens but also provides legislators with basic case descriptions and value judgments. Centered around this viewpoint, Professor Shi Tongbiao systematically elaborated from three aspects: discussions on the status of judges in Western legal thought history, legal provisions of relevant countries and regions, and typical cases at home and abroad.
By sorting out the views of scholars from the natural law school, analytical law school, and social law school, Professor Shi Tongbiao pointed out that although the three schools emphasize legitimacy, legality, and rationality respectively, they all agree that when there are legal gaps, judges should actively exercise judicial functions to fill legal loopholes. From an institutional perspective, both the French Civil Code and the Swiss Civil Code establish the basic principle that "judges shall not refuse to adjudicate," emphasizing that disputes should be resolved within the legal framework through judicial means. Furthermore, Professor Shi Tongbiao further explained the positive significance of judges engaging in creative justice and providing solutions to social problems when facing legal loopholes, citing examples such as the "Asahi Trial" in Japan, the "Ruan Luming v. Beijing Subway" case in China, and the "Benefit Recipients Obtaining Viagra Free of Charge" case in Germany.