20 April 2006
Shaping Hong Kong¡¦s Legal Landscape
The Chinese University of Hong Kong Appoints Three Honorary Professors to
the School of Law
The Chinese University of Hong Kong is proud to announce that three of the best legal minds in the common law world have been appointed as Honorary Professors of the University¡¦s new School of Law. The experience and wisdom of these distinguished and internationally recognized legal experts will help further shape the future of legal education in Hong Kong.
The newly appointed Honorary Professors are Lord Woolf of Barnes, former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales and Non-Permanent Judge of the HKSAR Court of Final Appeal; Dr the Honorable Sir T L Yang, GBM, JP, former Chief Justice of Hong Kong and Chairman of the Executive Committee of CUHK School of Law; and Sir David Williams, Q.C., D.L., a leading public lawyer in the common law world and former Vice-Chancellor of The University of Cambridge.
Each of these distinguished legal experts has been involved in, and responsible for, some of the most transformative and important reforms in the legal developments of their respective jurisdictions. Each has made major contributions to the rule of law in a modern context and each has played a part in influencing the framework and public perception of the role of a constitution in civil society. The appointments therefore represent an important step in establishing the School of Law¡¦s role in bringing historical, comparative and practical skills at the highest level to Hong Kong legal education and it is a privilege for colleagues and students at The Chinese University of Hong Kong to welcome each of the three Honorary Professors in turn.
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Lord Woolf of Barnes
As former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales from 2000 to October 2005 and former Master of the Rolls between 1996 and 2000, Lord Woolf of Barnes is one of the most respected and foremost lawyers in the world today. Of his many contributions to the administration of justice, Lord Woolf was responsible for a major inquiry into prisons following disturbances among inmates and most importantly, the reform of the whole of the civil justice system in England and Wales . He is therefore the person responsible for modernizing and revolutionizing how civil actions involving, for example, personal injury are handled by lawyers and the courts.
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Dr the Honorable Sir T L Yang
Dr the Honorable Sir T L Yang was Chief Justice of Hong Kong from 1988 to 1996. He is undoubtedly one of the most respected lawyers in Hong Kong . As Chief Justice he played a pivotal role in the creation of Hong Kong ¡¦s post-1997 legal landscape and the relationship between the Basic Law and the PRC Constitution. As early as 1985 he initiated important academic and judicial links between the legal systems of Hong Kong and China , with a particular focus on the importance of separation of powers and judicial independence as the foundation for the rule of law after the handover. Sir T L Yang also changed the course of 152 years of legal tradition by introducing the use of Chinese language into the courts of Hong Kong in 1995. Another of his achievements was the modernization of the Hong Kong legal system involving the recruitment of judges and the administration of the judicial system.
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Photo courtesy of The University of Wales
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Sir David Williams
Sir David Williams is an outstanding public law professor in the common law world. He is Chairman of the Law Academic Advisory Committee of the CUHK School of Law, Vice-Chancellor Emeritus of the University of Cambridge and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of English Law. Sir David was Vice-Chancellor of The University of Cambridge from 1989 to 1996 and is one of the world¡¦s leading academics in constitutional and administrative law. He is an honorary Queen¡¦s Counsel and has been an advisor to governments throughout the world.
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It is our privilege to welcome Lord Woolf, Sir T L Yang and Sir David Williams to The Chinese University of Hong Kong as Honorary Professors. The School of Law will draw upon their unrivalled experience to help shape the future of legal education in Hong Kong and internationally and will benefit greatly from their expertise.