This book explores the role and work of China's supreme-court--the Supreme People's Court--focusing especially on the court's role in the struggle to establish the rule of law in China's judicial system. It discusses, for example, the differing positions of those who favour the "rule of law option", where there is organisational separation of legislative and judicial responsibility, and those who argue for the retention of China's present system where judges and the courts are subordinate to the Party and who are concerned by any increase in the courts's independent interpretative activities. It also shows how the independence of courts has in fact grown, examines how the supreme courts has established its supremacy over lower courts, and discusses the supreme court's handling of the politics of death penalty reform. The book covers the Court involvement in criminal, administrative and civil law.