- CUHK Faculty of Law
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The Chinese University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law Established 2004 School type Public Dean Professor Christopher Gane[1] Location Ma Liu Shui, New Territories, Hong Kong, China Enrollment 1,226[2]
261 LLB
530 JD
274 LLM
145 PCLL
16 M.Phil./Ph.D.Faculty 46 Website www.law.cuhk.edu.hk The Chinese University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law (also known as CUHK Law or CU Law) is one of the eight faculties of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. It is the third and newest law school established in the territory.
Contents
History
In 2004, the University submitted its Academic Development Proposal for the 2005-08 triennium to the University Grants Committee (UGC), where it set out its desire to establish a new law school as part of a key element of the University's ten year vision. The proposal was accepted, whereupon the School of Law was established.
The School of Law, with its founding group of LLB, JD and LLM students, were formally inaugurated on 9 November 2006. The first research students, comprising M.Phil and Ph.D candidates, were admitted in 2007. The Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL) programme, the professional qualification programme required for admission to the legal profession in Hong Kong, began in September 2008.
On 1 August 2008, the School of Law attained its Faculty status. The Founding Director of the School, Professor Mike McConville, Simon F S Li Professor of Law, was also appointed the first Dean of the Faculty on the same day.
In 2010, the Faculty established a careers advice programme in conjunction with its Virtual Careers Resource Centre, a first among Hong Kong law schools, to prepare law students for entering the profession or to explore alternative career paths.
On August 2011, Professor McConville stepped down from the Deanship and has remained a Research Professor at the Faculty. He was succeded by Professor Christopher Gane, former Chair of Scots Law at the University of Aberdeen School of Law, Scotland, as the Faculty Dean in September 2011.
Campuses
The Faculty operates on twin sites, with its headquarters at the University main campus in Shatin. The LL.B students conduct their undergraduate classes in Sha Tin at the new Western Teaching Complex, which includes its own moot court.[3] Situated immediately next to it is the Lee Quo Wei Law Library, located on the 3rd and 4th floors of the University Library.
The graduate-level law classes for the JD, the LLM and the PCLL are held at the Graduate Law Centre (GLC), on the second floor of the Bank of America Tower in Admiralty.[4] Located in the central business district of Hong Kong, the GLC is within walking distance of the Hong Kong High Court, the Legislative Council Building, barristers' chambers and law firms. The GLC has its own legal resource center, considered a "mini law library", as well as lecture theatres, a multi-purpose moot court, breakout rooms and a computer lab to facilitate teaching and learning.
The Sir TL Yang Society, named after the former Chief Justice of Hong Kong, organizes activities and social functions to assist law students in academic and professional development. The primary student governments at CUHK Law is the Undergraduate Law Society of the Student Union at CUHK and the Graduate Law Students Association.
Degrees Granted
The Faculty of law offers both undergraduate and postgraduate level law degree programmes. Unlike most other common law jurisdictions, the LLB and the JD exists simultaneously in Hong Kong, allowing for potential admission to the legal profession through an undergraduate or a postgraduate route.
Undergraduate
It offers a full-time four-year Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) Programme. The degree offers students a general and professional education at the undergraduate level. Successful applicants who enroll in the LLB programme at the Chinese University of Hong Kong are given the opportunity to choose a double degree option towards the end of their first year. Three double degree options are available for LLB students: Law and Business; Law and Translation; and Law and Sociology.[5]
Postgraduate
- Juris Doctor Asia (J.D.), a graduate entry professional common law degree
- Joint JD/MBA degree
- Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Chinese Business Law, Common Law, and International Economic Law
- Master of Philosophy in Laws (M.Phil.)
- Doctor of Philosophy in Laws (Ph.D.)
- Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (P.C.LL.), required for admission to the profession
Notable People
The Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Faculty of Law is the Honourable Mr. Justice Syed Bokhary, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal. The inaugural Dean, Professor Mike McConville, is a well-respected socio-legal scholar. Professors Bryan Mercurio (international economic law), Michael Pendleton (intellectual property), Eva Pils (human rights) and Yu Xingzhong (constitutional law) are among the internationally notable scholars on staff.
Honorary Professors
- The Right Honourable Lord Woolf of Barnes, former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales and a non-permanent judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal
- Dr the Honourable Sir Ti Liang Yang, former Chief Justice of Hong Kong
- The Honourable Sir David Glyndwr Tudor Williams (22 October 1930 – 6 September 2009), former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge
- Dr the Honourable Andrew Li Kwok-nang, former Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal
Honorary Visiting Professors
- Ian Grenville Cross, former Director of Public Prosecutions of Hong Kong
Research Centres and Programmes
Centre for Financial Regulation and Economic Development (CFRED)
Established in 2011, the Centre supports and facilitates research in all areas of law affecting commerce and business dealings, including the fields of banking law, capital markets, commercial law, contract law, corporate law, investment law, intellectual property, securities regulation, international trade law, tax law, and any other economically focused area of law.
Centre for Rights and Justice (CRJ)
Established in December 2010, the Centre aims to promote the Faculty's research in the areas of comparative conceptions of rights, justice and injustice; security and terrror; transitional justice; criminal justice and environmental issues in China.
Refugee Clinical Assistance Programme
The programme was founded in 2009 by Professor Luke Marsh, who recognized the continued gap in protection for refugees and asylum-seekers in Hong Kong. This clinical program, formed in conjunction with the Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre (HKRAC), allows undergraduate and postgraduate law students to practice direct client services under the supervision of a qualified lawyer. Students receive class credits for their work at the Centre, where they are involved in assisting the most vulnerable categories of asylum seekers (namely unaccompanied minors, victims of sexual and gender-based violence, etc.) with making their cases to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in accordance with the UNHCR’s refugee status determination procedures.[6]
International Moot Court Competitions
Since its inception, the law school has hosted and participated in numerous international mooting competitions. For instance, in March 2007, the School of Law hosted the 4th Annual Willem C. Vis (East) International Commercial Arbitration Moot at the Graduate Law Center in Admiralty. The international competition brought over forty law schools from around the world to Hong Kong.
The CUHK Vis team, composed of first year JD law students, earned a team honorable mention and an individual honourable mention in their first moot competition at the 4th Annual Vis (East) moot.[7] In the Vis (Vienna) Moot 2008, CUHK finished 17th out of 214 participating teams and a team mooter received an honorable mention for his advocacy skills.[8]
The CUHK Jessup team have made significant achievements at the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition since 2008. Especially noteworthy is the 2010 team’s winning the Hardy C. Dillard Award, which honours the best overall memorials worldwide submitted by both the applicant and the respondent (out of almost 600 teams). During the regional round in 2008-2009 and 2009–2010, the CUHK Jessup team won the prizes for Best Team, Best Oralist and Best Memorial and represented Hong Kong at Washington, DC.[9][10] At the International Rounds in 2010, the CUHK team ranked 19th overall from the 105 competing teams who made it to that stage of the competition.
Other Programmes
- Hong Kong Human Rights Moot Court Competition (since 2010)
See also
- Chinese University of Hong Kong
- University of Hong Kong
- City University of Hong Kong
- Postgraduate Certificate in Laws
References
- ^ http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/people/academic-staff.php#dean
- ^ http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/faculty/student-numbers-1011.php
- ^ http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/faculty/locations-and-it-facilities.php
- ^ http://www.law.cuhk.edu.hk/faculty/locations-and-it-facilities.php
- ^ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/law/llb/doubleDegree.html
- ^ Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre Clinical Programs
- ^ The Fourth Willem C. Vis (East) International Commercial Arbitration Moot Awards 2007
- ^ Achievements of Previous CUHK Vis Teams
- ^ CUHK to represent Hong Kong in the world’s most prestigious mooting competition
- ^ Law students win thorny debate March 7th 2009
External links
Qualifications Law Schools Related topics Categories:- Law schools in Hong Kong
- Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Educational institutions established in 2004
- Universities in Hong Kong
- 2004 establishments in Hong Kong
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