國際司法互助分爲民事司法互助和刑事司法互助。本文研究範圍設定在民事部分。本文介紹民事司法互助的意義、基本 概念，以及民事司法互助之原則與準據法。 民事司法互助有四種原則，分別是一、國家主權的尊重原則，二、平等互利原則（平等互惠原則），三、公共利益保留原則，四、保護當事人合法權益原則。 司法互助所適用之程序與準據法，最直接影響的，是域外證據之證據能力或送達文書效力，在請求國是否能夠完全有效 的問題。 跨國證據資料得之不易，於不違背請求國強制規定下，宜採寬鬆解釋方式承認效力，遇有違背請求國的強制規定或禁止規定，或遇有請求國針對該事項法律上有特殊效力者，始採嚴格解釋或無效。 就司法互助的原則分別以觀，被請求國適用請求國之訴訟程序，乃是被請求國國家主權的緩和與退讓，且本質上是彰顯 極度尊重彼此國家的司法主權。 請求國應尊重被請求國的司法主權，適用被請求國的法院地法；但避免取證之後或進行協助之後，該協助行爲因違背請求國強制規定而無效，徒勞浪費司法互助，宜衡量被請求國的公共秩序，以不違背被請求閻公共利益爲前提，取證程序採用請求圓的訴訟程序準據法。 本文認爲，民事司法互助之準據法選擇，認爲宜自請求國以法律直接規定，應適用請求國或被請求國之訴訟或取證程序。
Legal assistance concludes civil matters and criminal matters. This article just researches into civil matters. This article just describes the meaning of the civil legal assistance, principles and the applicable law of legal assistance. There are four principles of the civil legal assistance: 1. Sovereign principle, 2. Equal and Mutual beneficial principle; 3. Public policy principle, 4. Protecting litigant legitimate rights and interests principle. What procedure and applicable law of civil legal assistance adopted influents directly the credibility of evidence abroad and the effect of the service in the requesting country. Those evidences are very difficult to be obtained abroad, so that the effect of those evidences should be confirmed to extend, while breaching the compulsory and prohibition provisions of the requesting country should be strictly interpretated or the effect is void. According 10 the four principles of the civil legal assistance, it is courtesy and enhancement of the sovereign of the principle that the quested country apply of the civil process law of the requesting country. The requesting country should respect the judicial sovereignty of the requested country and therefore the obtaining evidence of the procedure should apply the civil procedure law of the requested country But, 10 consider the effect of the evidences obtaining abroad in requesting country, to avoid breaching compulsory and prohibition provisions of the civil process law of the requesting country, to keep off the cooperation wasted, and to weigh the public policy of the requested country, the applicable law of the obtaining evidence should apply the law requesting country. What the applicable law of the civil legal assistance should be legislated in requesting country and requested country.
