III. Specific Provisions on Transitional Application

Article 20 For a contract which is entered into before the Civil Code comes into force, and the performance of which will last until after the Civil Code comes into force as provided for by any law or agreed upon by the parties, where a dispute arises from the performance of the contract before the Civil Code comes into force, the laws and judicial interpretations in force at that time shall apply; and where a dispute arises from the performance of the contract after the Civil Code comes into force, the relevant provisions of Chapters IV and V of Book Three of the Civil Code shall apply.

Article 21 A party's claim for the application of paragraph 2 of Article 734 of the Civil Code when the lease term expires before the Civil Code comes into force shall not be supported by a people's court; and a party's claim for the application of paragraph 2 of Article 734 of the Civil Code when the lease term expires after the Civil Code comes into force shall be supported by a people's court according to the law.

Article 22 Where, before the Civil Code comes into force, the spouses have been living separate and apart for another year after a people's court has ruled that a divorce is not granted, paragraph 5 of Article 1079 of the Civil Code shall apply if either spouse files a divorce action again.

Article 23 Where any dispute arises after a decedent dies because several wills made by the decedent, including a notarial will made before the Civil Code comes into force and a new will made after the Civil Code comes into force, conflict with one another in content, paragraph 3 of Article 1142 of the Civil Code shall apply.

Article 24 Cases of civil disputes where a tort occurs before the Civil Code comes into force but the consequences of harm appear after the Civil Code comes into force shall be governed by the Civil Code. 

Article 25 For a contract entered into before the Civil Code comes into force, where the time limit for exercising the right to rescind the contract is neither provided for by any law or judicial interpretation in force at that time nor agreed on by the parties, and the other party does not make a demand for the exercise, if the party who has the right of rescission knows or should have known the cause of rescission before the Civil Code comes into force but fails to exercise the right of rescission within one year from the date when the Civil Code comes into force, the people's court shall determine in accordance with the law that the right of rescission is extinguished; and if the party who has the right of rescission knows or should have known the cause of rescission after the Civil Code comes into force, the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 564 of the Civil Code on the time limit for exercising the right of rescission shall apply.

Article 26 Where a party requests a people's court to annul the marriage on the ground that the marriage is as a result of coercion before the Civil Code comes into force, the time limit for exercising the right of annulment shall be governed by paragraph 2 of Article 1052 of the Civil Code.

Article 27 For a contract of suretyship entered into before the Civil Code comes into force, where the agreement on the period for suretyship is ambiguous, if it is less than two years from the date of expiration of the time limit for performance of the principal obligation to the date when the Civil Code comes into force and a party claims that the period for suretyship should be two years from the expiration of the time limit for performance of the principal obligation, the people's court shall support such a claim according to the law; and where there is no such an agreement between the parties, if it is less than six months from the date of expiration of the time limit for performance of the principal obligation to the date when the Civil Code comes into force and a party claims that the period for suretyship should be six months from the date of expiration of the time limit for performance of the principal obligation, the people's court shall support such a claim according to the law.

IV. Supplemental Provisions

Article 28 These Provisions shall come into force on January 1, 2021.