This is a marvelous time for the study of Chinese law at Michigan. Michigan Law offers more opportunities to study Chinese law and legal institutions than any other law school in the United States and Canada. The Law School has worked hard to recruit Chinese-speaking J.D. students who now form a critical mass of law students at Michigan, creating an extremely hospitable and rich environment for those interested in Chinese law and legal institutions, and a place where our students can interact with top law scholars from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore visiting Michigan Law each year.
– Prof. Nicholas Howson
Chinese Legal Studies Program
Michigan Law is one of the major centers for the study of Chinese law and legal institutions in the United States. With its own faculty specializing in the study of the Chinese legal order, and in cooperation with faculty and curriculum offerings from the world-renowned University of Michigan Center for Chinese Studies, Michigan Law currently offers more courses on Chinese law than any other law school in the United States or Canada. Recent offerings include:
• Chinese Law and Legal Institutions
• Chinese Legal History
• Chinese Constitutionalism
• Chinese Corporation
• Chinese Investment Law
• China, the WTO and Globalization
• China, International Engagement and Domestic Legal Reform
• Corporate Governance and Stock Market Development
• International Corporate Governance
The Law Library and the University of Michigan's Asia Library combine to provide one of the most extensive multi-language collections of Chinese legal materials in North America or Europe, including a large collection of Chinese, Japanese and English language publications from the late Qing, Provisional Republican, and Kuomintang Government eras.
 Prof. Nicholas Howson with China People's University Vice President and Law School Dean Emeritus Wang Liming, Michigan Law Research Scholar '89-'90 (second from right).  Asia Law Society Symposium 2009: Cook Global Professor Hwa-Jin Kim, Seoul National University; Nicholas Howson, Michigan Law; Don Clarke, George Washington University; and Chenggang Xu, University of Hong Kong.  Sharon Hom, executive director, Human Rights in China, spoke on "U.S.-China Relations and International Human Rights" during a 2009 visit to the Law School.  Professor Jerome A. Cohen, NYU School of Law, presents "Does China Have a Legal System?"  Robert DeLaMater, former managing partner, China offices, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, presents "Is New York Still the Capital of Capital? Life in a Multipolar Global Market."  Professor Tang Xin, Tsinghua University School of Law, presents "New Progress of Corporate Governance in China."  James Kynge, former Financial Times Beijing Bureau Chief and author of China Shakes the World.  Wang Dan, leader of the 1989 Student Democracy Movement in China, presented "Realizing a New China" during a 2007 visit to the Law School.  Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky, former U.S. Trade Representative (1997-2001), addresses the February 2011 Michigan Law School/Wayne State Law School U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Scott Kennedy, Indiana University; Merit Janow, former WTO Appellate Body member; Tim Stratford, former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative; and Li Yongjie (standing), PRC Ministry of Commerce, at the 2011 U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Zhao Minyuan, U-M; Mary Gallagher, Michigan Center for Chinese Studies; Nicholas Howson, U-M; Zheng Wentong, Buffalo Law School; and John Ohnesorge, University of Wisconsin (Madison) Law School, at the 2011 U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Zhao Minyuan, U-M Ross School of Business, presents at the February 2011 Michigan Law/Wayne State Law School U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Sungjoon Cho, Chicago Kent College of Law; Zhang Ruosi, WTO Trade in Services Division; Mark Wu, Harvard Law; and John Ohnesorge, University of Wisconsin (Madison) Law School at the 2011 U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Alan V. Deardorff, John W. Sweetland Professor of International Economics and professor of economics and public policy, U-M, at the February 2011 Michigan Law/Wayne State Law School U.S.-China Economic Law Conference.  Ted Parson, Joseph L. Sax Collegiate Professor of Law and professor of natural resources and environment, U-M, speaks at the February 2011 Michigan Law/Wayne State Law School U.S.-China Economic Law Conference. |
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At the same time, the law school is the site of continuing conferences and academic meetings concerning law and legal institutions in Greater China, including the highly successful Asia Law Society Symposia, the International Law Workshop, and the continuing annual Beijing University-Michigan Law Tax Law Conference which rotates between Michigan and Beijing University. In recent years, Michigan Law has hosted the following Chinese law specialists for lectures or lecture series:
• Jerome A. Cohen, NYU Law School and the Council on Foreign Relations
• Robert DeLaMater, Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell, Managing Partner Hong Kong and Beijing Offices
• Sharon Hom, Executive Director, Human Rights in China
• Hwa-jin Kim, Seoul National University School of Law
• Li Xiuqing, East China University of Politics and Law
• Liu Junhai, China People's University School of Law
• Liu Sida, University of Wisconsin at Madison, Sociology
• Stanley Lubman, University of California at Berkeley School of Law
• Tang Xin, Tsinghua University School of Law
• Wang Dan, Leader of the 1989 Student Democracy Movement
• Wang Liming, Vice President China People’s University and Dean Emeritus China People’s University School of Law
• Zhu Ciyun, Tsinghua University School of Law
In February 2011, Michigan Law, Wayne State University Law School, and the U-M Center for Chinese Studies hosted the
U.S.-China Economic Law Conference in Detroit. The conference brought together leading academic experts and officials from North America, Europe, and Asia who analyzed critical legal, regulatory, and policy issues surrounding the world's most important trade and investment relationship. Highlights (including videos) from the conference are available
here.
Michigan Law takes advantage of its similarly strong programs in the study of Japanese Law and law and legal institutions in India to approach Chinese law and legal institutions from a comparative perspective, focusing on important other national legal systems subject to the same historical-philosophical influences or similar development processes.
Students have ample opportunity to undertake study or research in Greater China, or interact with the large number of accomplished scholars, researchers and China-origin degree candidates visiting the Law School.
A large number of Michigan Law graduates who take advantage of our advanced programs in Chinese law staff law firm and government offices throughout Greater China or universities in the PRC, Hong Kong and Taiwan.