A third draft of the general provisions of civil law was deliberated at the ongoing session of China's top legislature starting from Wednesday, marking a much-anticipated step toward laying down the principles of a civil code.

The general provisions, if enacted, represent greater protection of civil rights as they will better prevent administrative power from willfully encroaching on people's lawful rights and interests. As they will thus provide guidelines for the rulings in civil and commercial cases, the draft has drawn much attention from the public.

The General Principles of the Civil Law the country enacted 30 years ago established such modern civil law principles as "equality, equity, equal value exchange and honesty". But, although it was amended in 2009, many of its articles are now obsolete or inapplicable as a result of the country's rapid economic development and dramatic social changes.