The LLM in Chinese Business Law Programme provides students with a structured course to study the principles, processes, institutions and methods of civil and commercial law in China in the context of an evolving political, economic and social environment. It is designed to enable students to develop a broad intellectual outlook on the legal aspects of doing business
As Chinese companies are becoming increasingly influential on a global scale, the importance of Chinese business law has been garnering international attention. We proudly offer a stimulating learning environment for you to explore and examine the legal principles, rules, processes, and institutions of Chinese business law, while also fostering a comparative perspective to understand its intrinsic logic, development trends, and improvement pathways.
With our esteemed faculty, among the most distinguished in the Greater China region, we believe this academic journey will be a rewarding and captivating experience for all of you. We have attracted highly qualified applicants in large numbers each year since the launch of the programme, and we are truly grateful to all our students who have significantly enriched and energized the CBL programme with their intellectual contributions and diverse experience in training. Thank you for being one of them.
We look forward to welcoming you to CUHK LAW in September!
Yours sincerely,
Deputy Programme Director (LLM Chinese Business Law)
Medium of instruction: | English | ||||||||||||||||||
How and when to apply: | Applications for 2025 intake are now invited. You may apply through the online application system at the University’s Graduate School webpage. | ||||||||||||||||||
Admission requirements: | All applicants must fulfill the General Admission Requirements and the English Language Proficiency Requirement prescribed by the University’s In addition applicants must have:
As many areas of professional activity are related to law, we welcome applications from applicants who work in the areas of commerce, accountancy, social work, public administration, and similar Applicants whose undergraduate studies were not conducted and assessed in English are required to take an appropriate English language proficiency test and achieve a sufficient score, such as a score of 570 or above in TOEFL (Paper Based Test), 88 or above in TOEFL (Internet-Based Test); Band 6.5 or better in IELTS; or equivalent. The test results must be obtained not more than two years prior to the date of applying to join the LLM Programme. | ||||||||||||||||||
Duration: | Full-time: one year (normative study period) – two years (maximum study period). Part-time: two years (normative study period) – three years (maximum study period). | ||||||||||||||||||
Campus: | The CUHK Graduate Law Centre, 2/F, Bank of America Tower, Central. | ||||||||||||||||||
Programme requirements: | 24 units: including 12 units of required courses and 12 units of elective courses. Students should pass all the assessments with a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 in order to be recommended Study Sequence: Full-time mode (1 year)
Part-time mode (2 years)
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Delivery mode: | A 3-unit course will usually have three teaching hours per week. Classes are held during daytime and evenings of weekdays and daytime Classes will incorporate a mix of lectures, seminars, tutorials, presentations and | ||||||||||||||||||
Study options: | Students may take elective courses offered in other LLM Programmes and the JD Programme offered by CUHK LAW subject to availability | ||||||||||||||||||
Additional learning & development opportunities: | |||||||||||||||||||
Tuition fees: | HK$6,880 per unit* for a total of 24 units within the normative study period. Students will be billed at the beginning of each term based on the number of units for which they have registered. Extra fees may be charged for students studying outside the normative study period. *subject to annual review | ||||||||||||||||||
Further study options: | Master of Philosophy in Law (MPhil) or Doctor of Philosophy in Laws (PhD) | ||||||||||||||||||
Student housing: | There is a shortage of on campus student accommodation for non-local postgraduate students. When relocating to Hong Kong students are advised they will need to rely on (readily-available) private off-campus accommodation during |
Professor Hu specializes in international economic law, public international law, transnational law, and Chinese business law. She is currently working on the international governance of state enterprises. Before joining the faculty, Dr. Hu graduated from Peking University (LL.B. and Ph.D. in Law) and Yale Law School (LL.M). During her J.S.D. study at Yale, she had served as an editor for Yale Journal of International Law and a Teaching Fellow on China studies. Professor Hu’s teaching expertise includes Legal System and Methods in China.
Professor Huang is an expert in corporate law, securities regulation, financial law, commercial dispute resolution, and foreign investment, with a particular focus on Chinese and comparative law issues. He has published in some of the top-rated journals including the American Journal of Comparative Law, Arbitration International, the Delaware Journal of Corporate Law, Securities Regulation Law Journal, Journal of Corporate Law Studies, Journal of Business Law, Company and Securities Law Journal, Australian Journal of Corporate Law. He is author of the book Fintech Regulation in China: Principles, Policies and Practices (CUP, 2021) and has published with many other reputable publishers. Professor Huang’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Company Law and Chinese Securities Regulation.
Professor Lee is an expert in intellectual property law and law and technology. He has published on intellectual property and internet law in academic law journals including the Wake Forest Law Review, Oregon Law Review, Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts, Virginia Journal of International Law, Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law, and European Intellectual Property Review (EIPR). He is co-author of the book Intellectual Property Law in China (2nd ed.) (Wolters Kluwer, 2021) (with Peter Ganea, Danny Friedmann, and Douglas Clark), and co-editor of Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property (OUP, 2021) (with Reto M. Hilty and Chung-Chung Liu). Professor Lee’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Intellectual Property Law.
Professor Miao specializes in criminal law and Chinese legal system. She has published on the intersections between the domains of criminology, human rights, socio-legal studies and international law. Her recent scholarship focused on the administration of criminal law and policies in China and the United States. She studied post-reform capital sentencing process in mainland China. Her research extended to recent populist backlashes against the European Court of Human Rights in England in the field of criminal justice. She has authored book chapters and published in British Journal of Criminology, Theoretical Criminology and International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice. Professor Miao’s teaching expertise includes Legal System and Methods in China.
Professor Wang specializes in comparative tax law and fiscal policy, with a focus on Hong Kong and China. She has published on Chinese tax law reform, information exchange, tax administration and Hong Kong tax policies in academic law journals including Hong Kong Law Journal, the British Journal of Criminology, the Journal of Comparative Law, British Tax Review, and Australian Tax Forum. She obtained her PhD and LLM from King’s College London and her LLB from the East China University of Political Science and Law. Professor Wang’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Tax Law.
Professor Xi is an expert in comparative corporate law, securities regulation, and financial regulation, with a particular focus on the case of China. He has published extensively in leading peer-reviewed international journals, including the Banking and Finance Law Review, European Business Organization Law Review, Journal of Business Law, and Journal of Comparative Law, Statute Law Review, and Tort Law Review. He is author of the book Corporate Governance and Legal Reform in China (London: Wildy, Simmonds & Hill Publishing, 2009) and co-author of Doing Business in China (3rd ed) & (4th ed) (London: Routledge, 2009 & 2016) (hardback and paperback) (with Tim Ambler & Morgen Witzel). Professor Xi’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Financial Law and Chinese Investment Law.
Professor Zeng specializes in Chinese and comparative corporate law. He has published on corporate law, financial regulation, and law and economics in academic law journals including the International Review of Law and Economics, American Bankruptcy Law Journal, European Business Organization Law Review, Peking University Law Journal, Hong Kong Law Journal, the University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law, Columbia Journal of Asian Law, and Review of Banking and Financial Law. His doctoral dissertation, State Ownership as a Substitute for Costly Regulation, was supported by the Oscar M. Reubhausen Fund at Yale Law School. Professor Zeng’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Law on Corporate Finance.
Professor Zhang specializes in Chinese energy law, climate law and comparative environmental law. He has published on renewable energy, emissions trading and China’s energy sector reform in academic law journals including Journal of Sustainable Finance and Investment, Chinese Journal of Environmental Law, Climate Law, European Law Journal, Energy Policy, Journal of World Trade and Investment, Asia-Pacific Journal of Environmental Law, Journal of Environmental Law, and Transnational Environmental Law. He is co-editor of the book Climate Change Law in China in Global Context (Routledge, 2020) (with Xiangbai He and Alexander Zahar). Professor Zhang’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Energy Law and Chinese Contract Law.
Professor Zhao specializes in Chinese and comparative environmental law. She has published on circular economy, soil contamination, environmental enforcement, environmental dispute resolution, environmental impact assessment, and climate law and policy in academic law journals including Journal of Property, Planning and Environmental Law, Journal of Comparative Law, Journal of Environmental Law, Journal for European Environmental and Planning Law, China-EU law Journal, Carbon and Climate Law Review, Hong Kong Law Journal, and the University of Pennsylvania Asian Law Review. She is author of the book Chinese Environmental Law (CUP, 2021). Professor Zhao’s teaching expertise includes Chinese Environmental Law and Chinese Civil Law.
Students of the CBL programme will have opportunities to visit local legal institutions including the Court of Final Appeal, the Independent Commission Against Corruption and the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre. In the past, some of the CBL students had joined the Summer Study Abroad Programmes at Tsinghua University and the University of Sydney.
For newly admitted students/applicants
For current students
Yes. However, you can only study one programme at a time. Therefore, if more than one of your applications are successful you must choose only
No. The application fee once paid is
Yes. Any application received without the payment of the application fee will not be processed until the application fee
Yes. Students may apply for admission before completion of a Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) provided that they are in the final year of study. In this situation any offer will be made subject to the condition that all requirements for graduation in the Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) and for admission to the LLM programme are satisfied prior to commencing the
Yes. You can apply for admission to join a LLM programme before fulfilling the English Language Proficiency Requirement, but you must fulfill the Requirement and provide documentary proof prior to commencing the LLM programme. Any admission offer will be made conditional on you fulfilling the English Language
No. The Hong Kong Immigration Department has advised that in general it is unlikely that they will issue student visas to non-local applicants who intend to study part-time in Hong Kong. Therefore non-local students are strongly advised to study full-time in order to facilitate their student
Your official university transcript and confidential recommendations should be sent directly from your university and referees to CUHK LAW in
CUHK LAW selects applicants on the basis of academic merit. CUHK LAW welcomes applications from applicants around the world based upon the philosophy that diversity enriches the
No. However, applicants who do not possess a Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) obtained in Hong Kong or in an English-speaking country are required to fulfill the English Language Proficiency Requirement of the
No. On receipt of formal offers students will need to make their own arrangements for the payment of the deposit should they wish
Meanwhile, eligible local applicants may apply for financial support under Non-means-tested Loan Scheme from
Overseas students may check with organizations, government authorities etc, of their home countries if there is any financial
For information on other scholarships, please click here.
Application materials are disposed of after the end of each admission exercise. New applications will be
Newly admitted students are required to pay the tuition fees on or before the payment due date stated in the debit note in the admission package. Current students will receive a debit note at the beginning of each term, and are required to settle the tuition fees on or before the payment
Students who have not completed the programme requirements within the normative study period may apply to postpone the expected graduation date by submitting the Application Form for Change of Expected Graduation Date to CUHK LAW. The maximum extension is up to one year. The application is subject to the approval of CUHK LAW. The academic status of those students studying outside the normative study period will become “continuing”. Extra tuition fees may be charged for continuing students and the fee level for continuing student is subject to
Applicants should refer to the website of the Immigration Department for details concerning employment
Tel: | (852) 3943 4310 |
Fax: | (852) 2994 2505 |
E-mail: | lawpgadm@cuhk.edu.hk |
Address: | Faculty of Law 6/F, Lee Shau Kee Building The Chinese University of Hong Kong Shatin, New Territories Hong Kong |
"I have a background in both the Law and various Business fields. I chose to focus my career on China. As such, doing an LLM in Chinese Business Law at CUHK was the best decision I have ever made. The programme provided me with insight regarding Chinese business law. All of the professors and faculty members were very nice and internationally qualified. They were more than willing to help me enhance my legal knowledge and help prepare me for the professional world. I found the courses to be very practical and highly relevant to my career. In addition, the Graduate Law Center, where the courses are held, is located in a very convenient area in the business district of Hong Kong. Learning Chinese Business Law in Hong Kong, which is one of the world’s leading financial hubs and one of the leading economic hubs of Asia, was truly an invaluable experience for me."
"Having previously studied in a common law jurisdiction, the LLM in Chinese Business Law Programme has offered me an interesting comparison of how different legal systems would affect business decision-making in different countries. Importantly, the LLM exposes me not only to PRC law, but also to the principles of European continental laws.
Classes are always interactive and the professors are very approachable and supportive. On top of that, I really appreciate the diversified and refreshing assessment methods adopted in class such as mock client presentations, in which I was able to gain hands-on experience of the law in action rather than just the law on the books. In terms of personal development, I was also impressed by the variety of outside-the-classroom opportunities provided by CUHK such as mooting and career workshops. Overall, I believe the well-structured CBL Programme has equipped me with the necessary skills to pursue a first-rate career."
"Undertaking an LLM in Chinese Business Law has enabled me to better understand the financial and legal implications of the expanding trade and business relationship between China and the world. The professors are experts in their respective fields. They provided us with a rigorous understanding of the processes and principles of civil and commercial law in China. Moreover, they encouraged us to draw upon experiences from our respective countries and comparatively analyse the common law and civil law systems. Engaging in language exchange partnerships with my classmates in Mandarin and Cantonese even further enriched what has been a valuable experience."
"The LLM in Chinese Business Law has given me a deeper understanding of Chinese law and Chinese legal culture. It also helped me to better grasp the economic, political, and social implications of doing business in China. All professors were leading experts in their respective fields and encouraged the students to participate in class discussions. I appreciated the international and diverse learning environment at the Faculty, and I am happy to have made great friendships during my time here. The Faculty staff was very helpful and provided spectacular assistance to the international students. I was able to grow professionally and personally and I am very thankful for the time I spent at CUHK."