Private law in the People’s Republic of China has recently gone through a period of major renewal, culminating in the enactment of the new Chinese Civil Code. In contrast, private law in Hong Kong continues to be developed mostly incrementally by the courts, following the common law tradition of only occasional statutory reform. As civil law jurisdictions, Macao and Taiwan also each have their distinctive approach to private law reform. With a focus on the law of obligations, this conference aims to identify how private law scholarship can support and promote the modernisation of law in Greater China. It also seeks to explore to what extent cross-pollination between the private law systems of the four Chinese jurisdictions is possible, necessary and desirable.

To provide a platform for exchange on these issues, the CCTL Obligations Lab Asia at CUHK LAW will hold an online/hybrid (tbc) conference on “Private Law in Greater China: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” on Friday, 10 May 2024, 2 to 7:30pm (Hong Kong time). We are equally interested in work that adopts a comparative perspective or that focuses on a single jurisdiction and uses other methodologies, including empirical, theoretical or doctrinal approaches.

Examples of topics that could be explored in the context of the law of Greater China:

• New developments in contract, tort and unjust enrichment
• The Chinese Civil Code in action
• Private law and harmonisation of law in the Greater Bay Area
• Private law and the digital economy
• The interaction of private law with neighbouring areas of law
• Obligations law in historical perspective
• Obligations law in legal practice
• Teaching private law

The conference is directed at emerging as well as established scholars and practitioners of private law. To express your interest in presenting at the conference, please send a draft title, an abstract (between 150-300 words) and a short bio with your affiliation (no more than 150 words) to the CCTL Obligations Lab Asia at cctl.law@cuhk.edu.hk by Friday, 12 January 2024. Decisions on the acceptance of paper proposals and the invitation to present at the conference will be communicated by Tuesday, 30 January 2024.