The renminbi is known as the "national business card". While implementing the means of circulation, it also represents the image and dignity of the country. Article 15 of my country's "People's Bank of China Law" stipulates: "The legal currency of the People's Republic of China is Renminbi. All public and private debts within the territory of the People's Republic of China shall be paid in Renminbi, and no unit or individual may refuse to accept it."

The following "small case" that has had a huge impact across the country is the first case of rejection of RMB since the founding of the People's Republic of my country. This case started around 2 yuan and was called a "2 yuan" lawsuit by ordinary people. Although the facts of the case are relatively simple, although the case has been in the past 13 years, the social significance of the case and the legal issues it reflects are still worth recalling.

1. "2 yuan" lawsuit

The plaintiff Sun in this case is a staff member of the Jiaozuo branch of the People's Bank of China, and the defendant Jiaozuo Public Transport Company. At around 9 am on May 7, 1996, the plaintiff Sun took the defendant's No. 5 bus at the city pedestrian station to the No. 2 People's Hospital of the city to take care of his father who had just had an operation for cancer. When the plaintiff bought the ticket from the conductor, the conductor refused to accept the 2 yuan (the serial number is IY41203311) held by the plaintiff, and reprimanded that he did not accept bad money. The plaintiff explained to the conductor that the 2 yuan was not bad, and it was allowed according to the law. Circulation, but the conductor ignored this, claiming that this was the company’s regulations, and fellow passengers also agreed. The plaintiff suddenly became an alien in everyone’s eyes. It seems that the bus company’s regulations must be correct, even if it is a violation of the law. Under the circumstance of circumstance, the more reason for this is that the people do not know that there is a "People’s Bank of China Law" that has been implemented a year ago, let alone that this law expressly stipulates that any unit or individual cannot refuse The receipt can circulate RMB. Since the plaintiff only carried this small RMB, he insisted on using the 2 yuan to buy the ticket. The conductor insisted on asking the plaintiff to exchange for other money to buy the ticket. The two sides were in a dispute. During the meantime, the plaintiff heard vaguely from the conductor talking about letting the ticket. The plaintiff went to the team to "make it clear". In the case of a long-term dispute with the ticket seller, in order to ensure that he got off the bus in time to take care of his father, he was impatient, so the plaintiff had to take out the only RMB 50 yuan left and bought the ticket. When the plaintiff received 49.5 yuan from the ticket seller and wanted to get off the bus at the second hospital station, the door was closed before it had time to get off the bus, and the plaintiff was forcibly carried to the office of a certain team of the bus company so that it could not be timely Going to the hospital to take care of his father, who was seriously ill, brought him great mental damage. At noon on May 14, when the plaintiff took the bus again to buy a ticket, the same conductor still rejected the rejected RMB 2 for the same reason. The plaintiff believed that the defendant’s actions seriously violated the relevant provisions of the General Principles of Civil Law, the People’s Bank of China and the Consumer Rights Protection Law, and harmed his own legal rights, so he filed a lawsuit in the court to request the defendant to stop the infringement and pay compensation Apologized and asked for a symbolic compensation of 150 yuan for mental damage. In order to maintain the dignity of the law, publicize socialist laws, and take into account the particularity of the case, the author provided free representation for the plaintiff. The defendant claimed: It was a fact that when the plaintiff took the No. 5 bus in the city on the morning of May 7, 1996 and at noon on May 14, 1996, the conductor on the bus did not accept the RMB 2 with adhesive tape for ticket purchase. It’s not because of rejection. The reason for rejection is that the company’s bank does not accept it, so the conductor cannot accept it. As for the plaintiff’s claim that when the car arrived at the second city hospital station on May 7, the conductor refused to let the plaintiff get off the car and took him to the company on the grounds of letting him go to the convoy to explain clearly, so that he could not go to the hospital to take care of the seriously ill. His father is not a fact. The conductor claimed that the conductor did not stop him from getting off the bus, but stopped at the station for about two or three minutes. The plaintiff himself did not want to get off, and asked to go to the team leader to explain why he did not charge his 2 yuan, so he requested the court to reject the plaintiff Litigation claims. Under the author’s active promotion, this case was first reported by Jiaozuo Daily, which attracted widespread attention from more than 200 media units including People’s Daily, Legal Daily, CCTV, and China Central Broadcasting Station. Hot discussions in the world and big discussions among ordinary citizens. On July 10, more than 50 reporters from major media and about 1,000 people from all walks of life attended the public trial of the case in the temporary trial hall set up by the People's Court of the People's Court of the Liberated District of Jiaozuo City in the Club of the Electric Power Bureau of Jiaozuo City. During the trial, the two sides faced each other tit-for-tat and had a fierce debate on whether the 2 yuan renminbi presented in the court could circulate normally and whether the defendant's actions constituted infringement. After 5 hours of trial, the collegial panel made a judgment in court if the mediation was invalid. With the help of the appraisal conclusion made by the Jiaozuo branch of the People’s Bank of China on the RMB 2 yuan, the collegiate panel believed that when the plaintiff used a transparent paper to paste the 2 yuan to buy a ticket after damage, the ticket seller should accept it, and the defendant’s on-board ticket seller’s excuse for rejection was wrong. , Should bear the corresponding civil liability. The collegiate panel also adopted the plaintiff’s attorney’s representative opinion to demonstrate the infringement of the defendant’s conduct, and accordingly ruled that the defendant should apologize to the plaintiff within 5 days after the judgment takes effect. As for the plaintiff’s request for compensation for mental damage, the court found that the evidence was insufficient and did not support it. Both parties were dissatisfied with this judgment and expressed that they reserved the right to appeal, but after the expiration of the appeal period, the plaintiff and defendant did not appeal. So far, this "small case" that has had a huge impact across the country has come to an end, but the social discussion on the case is far from over. This case has produced huge and far-reaching social significance. At the same time, as an early civil public interest litigation case, this case has also played a positive role in promoting the development and improvement of civil public interest litigation in my country.

When people are familiar with public interest litigation and the research on public interest litigation has become more and more in-depth, the case that the author represented more than ten years ago does not seem to be a civil public interest lawsuit in the strict sense. The reason why this case is still defined as a civil public interest lawsuit It is a conclusion drawn from the characteristics of civil public interest litigation and the essence of the case.

2. The civil public interest litigation of this case

(1) Civil public interest litigation

Public interest litigation originated in Roman law. Compared with private interest litigation that protects private interests, public interest litigation means that certain organizations and individuals can, in accordance with the authorization of laws and regulations, bring a lawsuit to the court for violations of the law, national interest and social public interest, and the court will pursue the offender Litigation system of legal liability. Civil public interest litigation is the specific application of public interest litigation in the civil field. Civil public interest litigation means that citizens, social organizations and specialized state agencies initiate civil lawsuits against persons who violate civil and economic laws in civil and economic activities, infringe upon the state and social public interests, and disrupt social and economic order, and require the people’s courts Litigation activities that safeguard the national and social public interests through trials. According to the concept, civil public interest litigation should have the following characteristics:

First, the purpose of civil public interest litigation is to protect the national and social public interests, maintain social and economic order, and ensure the smooth progress of socialist construction. Second, the remedy content of civil public interest litigation not only requires compensation for existing damages, restoration of the original status, and punishment of the infringer, but also requires relevant entities to modify or change relevant policies and regulations, or take effective preventive measures to avoid damages. Appear or expand, and even prohibit the defendant from engaging in relevant activities. Third, from the perspective of both parties in a civil public interest litigation: first, the plaintiff may not have a direct interest in the defendant; second, the litigation often involves a large number of plaintiffs; and finally, the defendant is generally a strong group or member of society.

Based on the above characteristics, on the surface, it seems that this case should not be classified as a civil public interest litigation, but as long as the nature of the matter is explored through the appearance, the civil public interest litigation nature of this case can be discovered.

(2) Analysis of the civil public interest litigation in this case

First, the purpose of the plaintiff in this case. Regardless of the occasion, the plaintiff confessed that the initiation of this lawsuit was not for economic benefits, nor for the so-called “famous” or “showing the limelight”, but to use practical actions to safeguard the dignity of the national law and the renminbi as the legal statutory of China. The credibility of currency and the normal circulation order; it is to tell the masses of the people: when their legitimate rights and interests are violated, they must bravely take up legal weapons to protect them without having to endure it; it is also to protect the public interest and improve the people. Legal awareness. This shows the public interest of the litigation purpose of this case.

Second, the content of the defendant's request for relief in this case. The plaintiff has two claims: 1. Compensation and apology; 2. Compensation of 150 yuan for mental damage. On the surface, the plaintiff only offered remedies for the existing damages, and did not request remedies for the departmental regulations of the bus company that refused to accept the RMB with tape to avoid the continuation of the damage. From a substantive analysis, the plaintiff’s prosecution is the most direct manifestation of objecting to the regulations of the bus company department. One of the purposes of its litigation is to use legal means to confirm the illegality of the provisions of the defendant’s department. It is not reflected in the complaint provided by the plaintiff to the court, but the public interest litigation nature of this case cannot be denied.

Third, the parties involved in this case. First, the plaintiff and the defendant have a direct interest in this case. The plaintiff in a civil public interest lawsuit does not necessarily have a direct interest with the defendant, but it is not that the plaintiff must have no interest with the defendant. Secondly, the only plaintiff in this case is Sun, but it does not mean that Sun is the only one who has been infringed on his legal rights. It is not uncommon for the relevant departments to refuse to accept Renminbi in various places. The purpose of the plaintiff’s use of legal means to sue is to apply for relief on behalf of consumers who have suffered from rejection, so as to deny the defendant’s internal regulations and restore the normal circulation of Renminbi. , Safeguard the public interest. Therefore, although only one person, Sun, filed a lawsuit in this case, it represents the interests of consumers who have been rejected. Finally, compared with the plaintiff Sun as an ordinary consumer, the defendant bus company is absolutely stronger.

In summary, this case is an untypical civil public interest litigation case that occurred in the early stage of the construction of the rule of law in China. Although the public interest is not intuitive enough, it still caused a great sensation and shock in the land of Shanyang and even the whole country. Most of them are manifested through the huge social significance of this case.

3. The social significance of the "2 yuan" lawsuit

The "two yuan" lawsuit was first reported by the Jiaozuo Daily, followed by a reprint in the Henan Daily, followed by the People’s Daily, Legal Daily, Southern Weekend, Financial Times, CCTV, and China Central Television. News media such as radio stations successively conducted interviews and reports on the case. On July 20, 1996, the special report on CCTV's "Oriental Horizon" program titled "The Lawsuit Caused by Rejection of 2 Yuan" won the TV program gold medal. After a large number of media reports, promoted by the author, the social impact of this case spread from the land of Shanyang to the land of Central Plains, which triggered heated discussions among the people across the country. There were praise and criticism, support and opposition, but there was no objection to this case. It has a good social effect and great social significance.

(1) Social significance at the micro level

The so-called micro-level social significance refers to the social significance of this case visible in Jiaozuo, a small area.

First, this case publicized the "People's Bank of China Law" and other financial laws in a vivid form, which has great guiding significance for the construction of my country's financial legal system. In the form of a court decision, this case denied the widespread rejection of Renminbi, upheld and clarified the authority of the "People's Bank of China Law". With the help of reports and discussions by various news media and related units, the "People's Bank of China Law" and Other financial laws enjoy popular support. Through the extensive publicity of the "People's Bank of China Law" in this case, the refusal to accept Renminbi has become a well-known illegal act, which not only solved the long-term problem of "refusal" for consumers, but also solved the defendant Jiaozuo City. The old and difficult problem of payment difficulties faced by bus companies has achieved a win-win situation for the plaintiff and the public.

Second, this case implements the "People's Bank of China Law" and other financial laws in a unique way. After the case occurred, on the one hand, several professional banks in Jiaozuo City once again explicitly ordered the institutions not to refuse to accept RMB. On the other hand, various banking financial institutions in the seven counties and four districts under the jurisdiction of Jiaozuo City have set up special incomplete and defiled RMB exchange counters to express the exchange standards for damaged RMB and find the inevitable damage to the RMB in people’s lives. The end result has been accelerated, the withdrawal of broken coins has been accelerated, and the RMB market has been purified. In addition, the banking system launched a special seminar on "Financial Law Operation Practices" in response to this case, which greatly promoted the implementation of financial laws.

Third, this case urged various service industries to continuously improve their service quality in an effective way, and promoted a comprehensive change in their service attitudes. First of all, as a window industry for civilized services, the bus company used this case as an opportunity to hold a large-scale discussion activity on "Developing legal education and strengthening service functions" throughout the company, which enhanced the employees' legal concept and sense of professionalism, and improved the service quality of employees , Work ability, perfect the image of the bus company in the hearts of the people of the city. Secondly, after the occurrence of this case, the city’s financial system combined the "two yuan" lawsuit with the ongoing "four stresses and one service" activities, forming a focus on reform, politics, discipline, efficiency, and improving service levels. Great climate. The Jiaozuo branch of the People’s Bank of China organized the financial system to establish a special organization for the “four stresses and one service”, established a liaison meeting system, an inspection and notification system, and formed a situation of coordination, supervision, and implementation of the entire city’s financial system. The system's legal concept and service quality have been greatly improved. Finally, in addition to the bus system and the banking system, the service quality of other service industries has also been rapidly improved with the help of this case, and the service attitude of the entire service industry has undergone a comprehensive change.

(2) The social significance of the meso level

The so-called meso-level social significance refers to the nationwide impact of this case.

When reporting on the "two yuan" lawsuit, the major media across the country all focused on the issue of "how to protect the renminbi". With the guidance of the media, the case eventually developed into a vigorous campaign to protect the renminbi. Unlike the national flag, national emblem, and national anthem that also represent the country, the renminbi, a national symbol, performs functions such as value scale, circulation means, and payment means, so it appears more in people’s daily lives, and everyone can touch and use it. At this point, everyone who comes into contact with and uses it has the obligation to take care of it. However, the frequency of use seems to reduce the sanctity of the renminbi and people’s initiative to cherish the renminbi. In life, folds, pictures, and defacement damage the renminbi. Things happen frequently. With the help of the media, this case set off a movement to protect the renminbi in an intuitive way, and re-established the sanctity and solemnity of the renminbi as the legal tender of the People’s Republic of China. For this reason, a few months after the case occurred, the head office of the People's Bank of China decided to designate the week of August 18 as the "National Commemorative Week for Renminbi Care", one of them.

Second, when this case occurred, it coincided with the "Three Five-Year Plan" law popularization education activities in China. The "two yuan" lawsuit injected fresh and vivid content into this activity and raised the legal awareness of the whole people. This case became a model of law popularization education. At the same time, it also provides a good example for the in-depth study of various special types of infringement cases by the legal profession. This case reminds the general public that the law is not an unreachable regulatory document, but a powerful weapon that exists in people’s lives and can be used by people to protect their legitimate rights and interests. Through the public hearings of this case, a large number of media reports on this case, and relevant service departments taking this case as an opportunity to cultivate employees' legal concepts, the people's legal awareness has been unprecedentedly improved, which is concentrated in the intellectual property disputes caused by this case. In a series of cases such as the case of advertising infringement and the “five cents lawsuit”, the people’s awareness of law study and usage has also been greatly improved. For example, after the case was handled, a villager in Fangcheng County, Henan Province "This argument" wants to return to the "three yuan money" lawsuit filed by one's own wheat seed money, and more importantly, since this case, the five thousand years of "enduring self-security" thought has been gradually broken, and various "for" "Discussing arguments" and the number of lawsuits has been increasing year by year, and the people's legal awareness has been unprecedentedly improved. This is evident from the increase in the proportion of cases accepted by courts in the past ten years.

(3) Social significance at the macro level

The so-called social significance at the macro level refers to the impact of this case on people's thinking and legal consciousness. The social meaning of the micro and meso levels is tangible and limited, while the social meaning of the macro level is subtle but profound.

The 1993 constitutional amendment stipulated that "the country implements a socialist market economy." Since then, China has begun the transition from a planned economy to a market economy. The market economy has general characteristics such as equality, competition, legality and openness. The equality of economic entities and the healthy competition between economic entities need to be protected by law. Law has become an inherent requirement of market economy, and even in a sense, market economy is an economy under the rule of law. In order to meet the needs of building a socialist market economy, the state has included the construction of the legal system as an important agenda, and has promulgated a series of laws and regulations. The socialist legal system has become increasingly abundant. However, in stark contrast to this, the general public is still aware of the law. Indifferent, unable to keep up with the pace of China's legal system construction. The increasingly perfect socialist legal system has not created a good atmosphere for the public to know the law and use it. The 5,000-year-old feudal ideology and small peasant consciousness still dominate people’s thinking. Under the social background of increasing socialist legal system construction, law The effectiveness of the means to deal with social disputes has not yet been recognized. "Satisfaction and self-esteem" are still the habitual way for the public to handle all disputes. This has undoubtedly become the shackles of the development of China's market economy and social progress. To break this shackle, a revolutionary movement is needed, and the protagonist of this movement can only come from within the broad masses of the people, and the plaintiff in this case has played such a role.

The "2 yuan" lawsuit was the first case in the country that refused to accept RMB, and it was also the smallest civil dispute case in the country at the time. The most fundamental significance is that the "2 yuan" lawsuit was the Chinese people who began to learn to use legal weapons to protect their legitimate rights and interests. case. The Constitution of our country has established the basic strategy of "ruling the country by law". The most basic work of governing the country by law is to raise the legal awareness of all citizens, and this case is the best embodiment of citizens' legal awareness. It enlightens people that in a society ruled by law, they should have the idea of "not doing things with small things". Regarding violations in society, they should bravely take up legal weapons to defend their legal rights and safeguard social justice; it educates people Since living in a society ruled by law, you must learn, know, understand, and abide by the law; it signifies that the law is gradually becoming an important means for people to judge and deal with all disputes that occur in politics, economy, and culture. A good atmosphere of knowing the law and using it is gradually forming among Chinese citizens; it means that people no longer need to compromise when their legitimate rights and interests are infringed, even if the target amount is small, even if facing a powerful opponent, just bravely pick up With legal weapons, it is possible to win victory and realize social fairness and justice. If the socialist legislative activities are rich in the hardware system of the legal system, then the plaintiff’s brave use behavior in this case is rich in the software system of China’s socialist legal system. The hardware system of the socialist legal system can be improved in a short period of time by increasing legislation. The software system of the socialist legal system can only be gradually established through the joint efforts of the people of the whole country. The joint efforts of the people of the whole country need to be inspired by an example. The plaintiff in this case can inspire the people of the whole country to change their ideas, learn the law, know the law, and use the law courageously. An example of safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests. Relying on his belief in the law, the plaintiff in this case personally tested the effectiveness and operability of the law as a means of dispute resolution to resolve social disputes, and provided conditions for the broad masses of people to change their long-standing feudal peasant thinking and enhance their legal awareness. Objectively promote the process of China's democratic legal system construction. In a certain sense, this case marks the beginning of the broad masses of the Chinese people to use legal weapons to protect their legitimate rights and interests. It is a manifestation of the legal system in the civic realm. It is for this reason that three years after the case occurred, CCTV commemorated the reform. In the special program "The Rule of Law" produced on the 20th anniversary of the opening up, this case and the trial of the "Gang of Four" have become a landmark event in the progress of China's legal system.

In summary, whether it is based on the characteristics of civil public interest litigation or the enormous social significance of this case, it all shows the nature of this case. After the occurrence of this case, civil public interest litigation has been increasingly developed in my country. So far, this type of case has become a familiar type of case in my country's litigation field, and civil public interest litigation has also become a powerful weapon for safeguarding public interests.

After clarifying the nature of the civil public interest litigation in this case, the author will study several issues that are more controversial in this case.

4. Theoretical analysis of the "2 yuan" lawsuit

There are three main points of dispute between the plaintiff and the defendant in this case: first, whether the 2 yuan held by the plaintiff can be circulated; second, whether the defendant’s refusal to accept RMB is an act of refusal; third, whether the defendant’s act constitutes an infringement and infringement The right type.

(1) Whether RMB 2 held by the plaintiff can be circulated

First, according to the "Rules for the Exchange of Damaged Renminbi" (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures") promulgated by the People's Bank of China on May 8, 1955, only Renminbi that is damaged or defaced to a certain extent cannot be circulated. Article 3 of the "Measures" stipulates: "If more than one-fifth to one-half of the face is incomplete, and the remaining part of the pattern and text can be connected as it is, it should exchange half of the original denomination with the bank, but it cannot be used in circulation." The four provisions: “Any disability RMB that falls under one of the following circumstances will not be exchanged: 1. The face is damaged by more than one-half of the face; 2. The face is defaced, burnt, wet, oily, or discolored, and cannot be distinguished. Fake; 3. Deliberately digging up, altering, cutting, pasting, piecing together, or removing one side. Incomplete renminbi that is not exchangeable will be voided by the People’s Bank of China and shall not be circulated." Any incomplete renminbi that meets the above conditions cannot be circulated and used. . In this case, the 2 yuan that the plaintiff Sun held when he received the defendant’s services was 50% new. There was no missing piece. It was just broken in the middle. There was a transparent paper nearly one centimeter wide at the ticket break. This RMB obviously does not belong to the "Incomplete" According to Articles 3 and 4 of the "Renminbi Exchange Measures", the two yuan RMB held by the plaintiff is completely circulated.

Second, in order to correctly judge whether the RMB 2 yuan held by the plaintiff can be used in normal circulation, the People's Court of the Jiefang District of Jiaozuo City specially commissioned two appraisers from the Jiaozuo branch of the People's Bank of China to appraise the currency. The appraisal conclusions are as follows: "1. The note is a 1980 version of the 2-yuan note issued by the People’s Bank of China, with the title number IY4120311; 2. The middle of the note is roughly broken in a horizontal direction, and the back is glued with transparent paper (without glue). There is a gap of about 6 mm in the middle of the lower part. The paper is old and the pattern is clear. According to the above circumstances, according to the relevant regulations of the People's Bank of China, the 2 yuan note is a damaged currency. This currency is destroyed after the bank is recovered, and can be circulated before the bank is recovered. "The appraisal further proved that the RMB 2 held by the plaintiff can be circulated and used.

The above two points jointly proved that the RMB 2 yuan held by the plaintiff when purchasing the defendant’s services was completely circulated and usable, which was fully affirmed by the collegiate panel.

(2) Whether the defendant’s refusal was a refusal to accept RMB

The defendant admitted that he had refused to accept the RMB 2 held by the plaintiff, but denied that he had refused to accept RMB.

According to Article 15 of the "People's Bank of China Law", "rejection of renminbi" refers to the act of accepting only foreign currency and not renminbi. In this case, the defendant merely refused to accept the two yuan used to purchase the ticket held by the plaintiff, and did not refuse the plaintiff and others to use the undamaged renminbi to buy the ticket. Therefore, the defendant’s behavior does not belong to the refusal of the renminbi. behavior. Although the defendant’s behavior was not a refusal to accept RMB, the defendant’s refusal to accept the fully circulated damaged RMB used by the plaintiff in this case still damaged the legal credit and circulation order of RMB, and its illegality cannot be ruled out.

In order to prove that his refusal to accept the 2 yuan held by the plaintiff was not illegal, the defendant put forward the following two reasons: First, according to the "National Bank Teller Basic System" implemented on July 1, 1988 and the "Currency" of the People's Bank of Jiaozuo City. According to the provisions of the Measures for the Administration of Issuance and Cash Cashiers, the plaintiff in this case is holding the damaged currency, according to the "National Bank Cashier Basic System" and the Henan Provincial People's Bank of May 10, 1990 "Notice on Doing a Good Job in the Recovery and Destruction of Damaged RMB According to the regulations, the correct way to deal with damage to the renminbi is to collect it by a professional bank and send it to the PBOC’s issuing library for destruction. It is believed that the bus company has no legal obligation to recover the damaged RMB. Second, the defendant believed that he did not accept the taped RMB held by the plaintiff. The most fundamental reason was that the bank that the defendant had opened the account did not accept it, and the professional bank that opened the account did not accept it because of the regulations of the Jiaozuo branch of the People’s Bank of China. . It is believed that since the bank has regulations and the defendant’s refusal is in compliance with its regulations, the defendant is certainly not illegal. Regarding the defendant’s first reason for defense, according to the appraisal conclusion made by the Jiaozuo branch of the People’s Bank of China entrusted by the court, on the one hand, the court determined that the 2 yuan held by the plaintiff was a damage currency, and on the other hand, it also affirmed that the damage 2 yuan was circulated. Usability. It can be seen that the renminbi that is not damaged must be recovered by professional banks and destroyed by the PBOC. Therefore, the defendant’s first reason for defense cannot be established. Regarding the second reason for defense, the author believes that to measure whether an act is illegal, the provisions of the law should prevail. my country’s “People’s Bank of China Law” expressly stipulates that RMB shall not be rejected, but the defendant refused to accept the RMB that is fully circulated held by the plaintiff, which is obviously illegal. It is not necessary to not enforce the laws of the country because of the internal regulations of a certain department or unit, otherwise, the laws of the country cannot be implemented; it cannot be because a certain department has illegal regulations, and the defendant can not only prevent its illegal acts , Instead of passing the burden on to consumers. Therefore, the second reason for the defendant’s refusal is also untenable. The author’s above view was also adopted by the collegiate panel, and based on this, it was determined that the defendant’s excuse for rejection was wrong.

(3) Whether the defendant’s act constitutes an infringement and the type of rights infringed

According to the general theory, the constitutional elements of general tort civil liability are: the illegality of the act; the fact of damage; the causal relationship between the illegal act and the fact of damage; the actor has a subjective fault. The defendant’s behavior in this case fully complied with the four elements mentioned above.

1. The defendant’s actions were illegal

(1) The defendant’s behavior violated the relevant provisions of the People’s Bank of China Law

According to Article 15 of the law, no unit or individual may refuse to accept RMB, of course, provided that the RMB can be circulated and used. In this case, the RMB 2 held by the plaintiff when purchasing the defendant’s services was completely circulated and used, and the defendant’s refusal was clearly in violation of the above-mentioned legal provisions.

(2) The defendant’s actions violated the relevant provisions of my country’s Consumer Rights Protection Law

Article 14 of the "Consumer Rights Protection Law" (hereinafter referred to as "Consumer Law") stipulates: "Consumers have the right to respect their personal dignity and national customs when purchasing, using goods and receiving services." Article 25 Provisions: "Operators must not insult or slander consumers, and must not search consumers' bodies and the items they carry, and must not infringe consumers' personal freedom." In this case, the defendant was a provider of public transportation services, namely " In the Consumer Law, the plaintiff is the consumer of the defendant’s services. When the plaintiff, as a consumer, took the defendant’s bus and received the defendant’s services, the plaintiff used the circulated RMB 2 to buy the ticket, but was unreasonably rejected and reprimanded by the bus company conductor, which harmed the plaintiff’s personal dignity. When the dispute was unsuccessful, the plaintiff had to buy the ticket with the only RMB 50 face value he had, but the conductor refused to let the plaintiff get off the bus on the grounds that the plaintiff was asked to "clarify" in their team. He brought the plaintiff to the bus company, which objectively restricted the plaintiff’s personal freedom. Therefore, the defendant's behavior also violated the provisions of the "Consumer Law".

2. There are facts of damage in this case

(1) The defendant’s refusal to accept infringed the plaintiff’s right to dispose of the RMB 2 yuan and damaged the integrity of the plaintiff’s ownership.

The plaintiff has ownership of the RMB 2 in this case. Article 71 of my country's "General Principles of Civil Law" stipulates: "Property ownership refers to the owner's right to possess, use, profit and dispose of his own property in accordance with the law." The object of property ownership is limited to tangible objects, specific objects and independent objects. The two yuan involved in this case are tangible and independent, but are they specific? Renminbi is a kind of thing, and it cannot be said that the subject has the ownership of the Renminbi. However, the two yuan with the title number IY41203311 held by the plaintiff when purchasing the ticket is a specific thing. Therefore, the two yuan held by the plaintiff when purchasing the ticket The renminbi has ownership.

The defendant’s refusal hindered the plaintiff’s punishment of all his 2 yuan. Among the four powers of ownership, the right to dispose is the most important power, the most fundamental symbol of universally recognized ownership, and the final disposal of the property by the property owner in fact and law. As a matter of special significance in civil law, RMB is no longer a commodity. The ultimate purpose of people's possession and use of it is to dispose of it, that is, to use it to purchase goods or services. If people do not have the right to dispose, they cannot realize and carry out actual production activities. In this case, due to the obstruction of the bus company’s conductor, the plaintiff’s right to dispose of his own property was impaired, so that the plaintiff objectively lost the power to dispose of, and deprived him of the complete ownership in the legal sense. The most realistic result was the plaintiff. Unable to realize the enjoyment of life brought about by normal commodity exchange. This kind of infringement of a citizen's normal life enjoyment is realized precisely through the infringement of the right to dispose of his property. Therefore, the defendant believes that his actions did not cause any property damage to the plaintiff, and therefore the claim that it did not damage the facts is completely untenable. Damage refers to the disinterest of property or other legal benefits. Based on this, we believe that damage can be divided into property damage, personal damage, and mental damage. The defendant and the public adhere to the traditional view that it is incorrect to believe that damage only refers to loss of property. Damage includes loss of property, but not only loss of property. Therefore, the nuisance to the right of disposal can also cause damage to the fact, that is, the integrity of ownership.

(2) The defendant’s actions violated the plaintiff’s right to personal dignity and personal freedom

According to the "Constitution", the right to human dignity is the right of everyone to have self-esteem and self-love not to be harmed and personal value not to be degraded. The right to personal freedom refers to the freedom of citizens to act independently within the scope of the law without being interfered by others, not to be illegally arrested, detained, and not to be illegally deprived, restricted, and free to search their bodies illegally. The right to personal dignity and the right to personal freedom are the most basic and basic rights of citizens, and are the prerequisites for citizens to participate in various social activities and enjoy other rights. Based on this, China’s Constitution, General Principles of Civil Law, Consumer Law and Other relevant laws have made clear protective provisions on the right to human dignity and personal freedom.

In this case, when the plaintiff, as a consumer, received the defendant’s services, he had a dispute with the ticket seller because of the receipt or non-payment of 2 yuan. Although the plaintiff preached the law and pointed out the illegality of refusing to accept RMB, the ticket seller’s explanation to the plaintiff was not Hearing, instead, he used degrading language to reprimand the plaintiff in public. Many passengers mistakenly believed that the plaintiff was making trouble unreasonably, which greatly damaged the plaintiff's dignity.

In this case, when the plaintiff arrived at the station, the defendant refused to let the plaintiff get out of the car, so that he could not go to the hospital in time to take care of his father who had just undergone surgery due to cancer and his life or death was uncertain. The plaintiff was anxious to see his father. The mood is conceivable. Therefore, the defendant’s claim that the plaintiff himself did not want to get off the car is totally unfounded. The plaintiff took out his only RMB 50 yuan to buy it just to get off the car in time. If the plaintiff did not want to get off the bus and voluntarily went to the bus company to "clarify" the ticket, he would not have to or would buy a ticket later. Therefore, the defendant’s refusal to let the plaintiff get off the vehicle violated the plaintiff’s right to personal freedom.

In summary, the defendant’s actions have caused damage to the plaintiff’s property ownership (RMB 2), personal dignity and personal freedom. Then, do these damages constitute the damage facts stated in the tort law? The damage becomes the three conditions that must be met in the tort law: the remedialability of the damage; the determination of the damage; the legality of the damage object. The plaintiff’s ownership of 2 yuan, the plaintiff’s right to personal dignity and personal freedom are all legitimate rights and interests that are clearly protected by law. The consequences and scope of the infringement caused by it can also be determined objectively, and the determination of the damage that meets the requirements of the damage facts Sex and damage the legality of the object. Let's see if the damage to the three kinds of legitimate rights and interests can be remedied.

The so-called remedialability of damage refers to the possibility of legal remedy for damage, including both quantitative and qualitative possibilities. The former means that the damage must reach a certain amount. For minor damages, the law does not consider it necessary to remedy the damage; the latter It means that the damage should fall within the scope of remedy recognized by law. First of all, the law protects citizens' legal property ownership, inherent right to personal dignity, and right to personal freedom, all of which are protected by relevant laws, which fall within the scope of legally recognized remedies. After determining the qualitative remedialability of the damage in this case, the following will study the quantitative remediation.

First, the defendant refused to accept the 2 yuan held by the plaintiff when he purchased the ticket. When the plaintiff pointed out the illegality of the refusal, the defendant's conductor not only refused to listen, but instead used degrading language to reprimand the plaintiff in public. , Seriously infringed upon the personal dignity of the plaintiff. Therefore, the defendant’s damage to the plaintiff’s personal dignity in this case has broken through a small amount, and the law completely needs to provide relief. Second, the defendant refused to let the plaintiff get off the bus and forcibly carried it to the bus company, which violated the plaintiff’s personal freedom, and the law imposed the strictest protection on citizens’ personal freedom. The defendant was involved in this case. The act has seriously violated the plaintiff’s right to personal freedom and fully reached the necessary level of legal relief. Third, at first glance, the defendant’s refusal to accept the plaintiff’s 2 yuan damage to the renminbi only temporarily impeded the plaintiff’s ability to dispose of the 2 yuan renminbi ownership. The damage seems to be trivial. However, the renminbi has special significance in civil law. A thing is a special commodity that serves as the equivalent of all commodities or services. The sole purpose of citizens for possession, use, and profit is to dispose of them. The defendant’s refusal to accept this circulated renminbi is not only manifested in the refusal of the plaintiff’s 2 yuan, but it may also interfere with other damage renminbi held by the plaintiff and many other citizens, and if it is generalized, it will It seriously affected the circulation of Renminbi. Therefore, the defendant’s refusal behavior and the refusal provisions made were not only illegal, but the degree of damage caused to the plaintiff was legally remedial. Because repeated minor illegal damages are also intolerable.

3. There is a causal relationship between the defendant’s illegal act and the fact of damage

As mentioned above, the defendant’s refusal and restriction of the plaintiff’s personal freedom violated the relevant provisions of China’s "People’s Bank of China Law", "General Principles of Civil Law" and "Consumer Rights Protection Law", and it was precisely their illegal acts that harm It violated the plaintiff’s right to personal dignity and personal freedom. Therefore, there is a causal relationship between the defendant’s illegal act and the fact of damage.

4. The defendant was at fault subjectively

At the time of this case, it had been more than two years since China's "Consumer Rights Protection Law" was promulgated and implemented, and the "People's Bank of China Law" had been in fact for more than a year, but the defendant and its conductor still ignored the law, especially when the plaintiff informed When his refusal was illegal, he still did not make corrections, but instead became more severe and refused to let the plaintiff get out of the car. Obviously, the defendant was at fault subjectively.

In summary, the author believes that the defendant’s actions in this case can constitute infringement, and this view has also been recognized by the court. At the same time, the author's full research and explanation also promoted the development of my country's ownership theory to a certain extent.

After five hours of trial in this case, the court made a judgment in court on the basis of fully listening to both the plaintiff and the defendant. The judgment effectively maintained the legal status and credibility of the RMB, and made its due contribution to the convenience of people's lives. All this is inseparable from the hard work of the judges, lawyers, parties, and the press.

V. Conclusion

The "small case" that has had a huge national impact in this case is a friendly confrontation between the plaintiff and the defendant. It has played a positive role in promoting my country's law popularization work and is a shining example in the history of my country's legal propaganda. At the same time, this case also carried out a useful exploration and development of my country's ownership theory. In addition, the great social discussion triggered by this case has made the people's legal awareness of learning and using law unprecedentedly improved, which has epoch-making significance in the historical process of my country's democracy and legal system construction.