摘要： 民事诉讼法授权法院依职权收集审理案件所需要的证据，为法院依职权调查取证留下了较大的空间。在民事司法改革过程中，这一权力被极度缩小，使得我国法院依职权收集证据的权力明显小于德国、法国等大陆法系国家。通过发现真实达致实体公正是包括我国在内的各国民事诉讼制度的根本目的，过分限缩法院依职权调查取证的权力妨碍了实体公正的实现，已经产生了多方面的负面效应。因此需要对以往的改革进行检讨，并通过适当扩大法院依职权调查收集证据的权力，在民事诉讼中建立科学的案件事实发现机制。

关键词: 民事诉讼法, 实体公正, 依职权收集证据

Abstract: The P. R. C Civil Procedure Law has empowered the courts to collect necessary evidence in case hearing,which has created a broad scope for the court's authority to conduct investigation and collect evidence ．However,such authority has been severely reduced in the process of civil judicial reform, which has led to the result that the courts authority to collect evidence is much weaker than that of the continental law countries, such as Ger-many and France. The fundamental aim of the civil procedure law system of each country, including China, is torealize substantial justice through finding the truth, and excessively reducing the courts' authority to conduct in-vestigation and collect evidence has hindered the realization of the substantial justice and caused multi-aspect neg-ative effects ．Consequently, we should review the past reform and establish a reasonable fact-finding systemthrough properly expanding the courts' authority to conduct investigation and collect evidence.

Key words: Civil Procedure Law, Substantial Justice, Authority to Collect Evidence