UBC and University of Hong Kong to Establish Unique Trans-Pacific Legal Education Program

The University of British Columbia and t he University of Hong Kong have established a new joint legal education program that opens doors for graduates to practise law in both Canada and Hong Kong.

UBC and the University of Hong Kong (HKU) — two of the top-rated universities in the world — formally signed the agreement today at UBC’s Vancouver campus, ratifying one of the most promising legal education programs linking North America and Asia.

“We’re extremely pleased to partner with the University of Hong Kong,” says UBC President Stephen Toope. “This program will equip students with the cross-cultural legal knowledge and professional contacts to foster even greater exchange between Canada and Asia.”

“The programme reaffirms our joint commitment to teaching and nurturing independent-thinking, culturally-aware individuals who will rise to the challenges and opportunities of global citizenship,” says HKU Vice-Chancellor Professor Lap-Chee Tsui. “I indeed hope that our two institutions will be able to continue to collaborate in other professional disciplines with a view to achieving mutual professional recognition.”

“This is an exciting collaboration between HKU and UBC law schools, which also strengthens the links between legal education in North America and Asia,” says Prof. Johannes Chan, HKU Dean of Law. “Our students will benefit both in terms of intellectual and professional development with exposure to a different jurisdiction and social and cultural environment.”

The international nature of many legal transactions today has created a demand for lawyers who can practise in multiple jurisdictions. Such lawyers are prized by law firms and corporate law departments. The last 10 years have seen a rise in the number of joint legal education programs, particularly between U.S. institutions on the East Coast and Europe. 

The Faculties of Law at UBC and HKU will each accept up to five students per year, starting in 2009. All students enrolled in the program will be able to earn the law degrees required — subject to admission and completion of the professional course requirements — for law practice in an additional jurisdiction, that being Canada for HKU students and Hong Kong for UBC students.  

The joint legal education program requires just one extra year of study with UBC’s LLB students completing four years instead of three and HKU law students completing six years instead of five. 

“This is an important step for legal education and the legal community of British Columbia,” says Martin Donner, National Co-Chair of the Asia Pacific Client Service Group of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. “This shows, in particular, the importance of Vancouver and UBC in strengthening Canada’s ties with Asia.”

The new legal education program is yet another example of academic and research collaboration between UBC and HKU. In 2006, they announced the creation of the Simon K.Y. Lee HKU-UBC House, a new international student residence and cultural centre for UBC’s Vancouver campus.

Made possible by a $4-million gift from Hong Kong-based philanthropist Simon K.Y. Lee, the centre will accommodate up to 100 HKU students and the same number of UBC students with an emphasis on creating an environment of diversity and academic excellence. The Simon K.Y. Lee HKU-UBC House will also serve as a hub for cultural activities.

Background

UBC Faculty of Law

As one of Canada’s leading law schools, UBC’s Faculty of Law offers a varied program of instruction in a broad array of legal fields to highly qualified and diverse law students in professional and graduate degree programs. Faculty members are engaged with and connected to academics, practitioners, and policy-makers across the globe, and are committed to ensuring that their research makes a difference — locally and globally.

The Faculty’s Centre for Asian Legal Studies is the largest group of academics teaching and researching Asian legal issues in Canada. Faculty members teach courses and seminars on the law and legal systems of China, Japan, Korea and Viet Nam; they also supervise graduate and undergraduate students working on Asian legal issues. The Centre hosts more than 20 visiting judges, academics, and lawyers as Visiting Scholars each year.

Information about the Faculty of Law can be found at www.law.ubc.ca.

HKU Faculty of Law

The Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong is the oldest law school in Hong Kong and one of the most prestigious law schools internationally. First established in 1972, the Faculty has more than 60 full time academic staff and about 1,100 students.

The Faculty comprises the Department of Law and the Department of Professional Legal Education and four research centres which include: the Centre for Comparative and Public Law; the Asian Institute of International Financial Law; the Law and Technology Centre; and the Peking University-HKU Research Centre.

The HKU Faculty of Law has been training graduates who are today distinguished legal professionals and leaders of the Hong Kong community. Building upon its unique position as the only common law jurisdiction in China, capitalizing on the “one country, two systems” principle, the HKU Faculty of Law has an irreplaceable role to play in scholarship, research and education on common law and comparative law as well as the development of the Rule of Law in China. To read more about HKU Faculty of Law, visit: www.hku.hk/law.

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