Abstract: Seeking for good laws and good governance was the goal of the late Qing legal reform led by Shen Jiaben(沈家本), the High Commissioner for the Revision of Laws. This paper reviews his legal and political life, introduces his contribution to the construction of the rule of law in modern China, and probes into his stance and methods in the face of the complicated law conflicts between the ancient and modern eras, China and foreign countries in the legal reform. Shen Jiaben focused on the restoration of the ancient way in the issues of ancient and modern times. He distinguished the legal system of the Han and Tang Dynasties from that of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and tried to restore Chinese classical legal ideas. He focused on mutual understanding in the issues of Chinese and Western cultures. He did not stick to the prejudice regarding the difference between China and the West, and tried to integrate the modern Western jurisprudence(法理) with the classical Chinese sense of reason(情理). He creatively developed the term “jurisprudence” in modern China. As an idealist with a practical approach, he was criticized by both conservatives and radicals during the legal reform. Shen Jiaben’s legal legacy, including the self-confidence and consciousness of Chinese classical law and legal culture, and an open-minded attitude towards learning modern Western legal civilization, is worthy of contemporary inheritance and development.