To provide a photosetting resin composition which has excellent transparency, chemical resistance, alkali resistance, heat resistance and water resistance as well as high compressive strength, and excellent process margin, sensitivity and developing property and which form a patterned coating film to be used for a display element.

The photosetting resin composition contains (A) an alkali-soluble resin obtained by subjecting a copolymer of maleic acid anhydride and a compound having an ethylenically unsaturated bond to the ring-opening reaction of the acid anhydride group in the maleic acid anhydride structural unit with a compound having an amino group, and further heating to produce an imide structure; (B) a resin having an epoxy group; (C) a compound having an ethylenically unsaturated bond; (D) a photopolymerization initiator; and (E) a solvent. The coating film made of the photosetting resin composition shows significantly high heat resistance compared to a conventional film. Therefore, when the film is used as a spacer, the film has little change in the thickness by heating in a succeeding process (for example, calcining an alignment film ) and causes little change or fluctuation of the cell gap for laminating a liquid crystal panel. This significantly reduces the rejection rate of the liquid crystal panel.