Against the background of recent adjustments of the party-state relationship, the talk will discuss the interaction of core ideological concepts with legal arguments through the lens of court decisions. By drawing on an analysis of cases, this study demonstrates that courts directly refer to concepts from the realm of party ideology. The citation of ideological concepts in the reasoning parts of court decisions serves various distinct functions such as justifying the judicial correction of legislation that produces unjust results, appeasing the loosing parties of lawsuits, and fulfilling educational purposes. How courts refer to party ideology in court decisions has implications for understanding the operation of the Chinese party-state.