The Asian Legal History thematic is focused on developing new perspectives on the history of law in Asia. Professor Wolff has emphasized the importance of exploring Hong Kong’s legal history in “Hong Kong Legal History – why and for what?,” in Itineraria iuris – From Rome to China: Festschrift for Ulrich Manthe. Professor Malagodi’s research explores the history of constitutionalism in South Asia, including for instance through pieces such as “Dominion status and the origins of authoritarian constitutionalism in Pakistan,” published in the International Journal of Constitutional Law, “Ivor Jenning’s Constitutional Legacy Beyond the Occidental-Oriental Divide,” published in the Journal of Law and Society, and “Constitution Drafting as Cold War Realpolitik: Sir Ivor Jennings and Nepal’s 1959 Constitution,” in Constitution Making in Asia: Decolonisation and State-building in the Aftermath of the British Empire. Professor Bui’s work examines the history of constitutionalism in East and Southeast Asia, including through such pieces as “Anticolonial Constitutionalism: The Case of Ho Chi Minh,” published in the Japanese Journal of Political Science, and “The Global Origins of Vietnam’s Constitutions: Text in Context,” published in the University of Illinois Law Review. Professor Gallagher’s research investigates cultural heritage law in Asia and elsewhere, as illustrated by pieces such as “Museums and the Return of Human Remains: An Equitable Solution” and “‘Purchased in Hong Kong’: Is Hong Kong the Best Place to Buy Stolen or Looted Antiquities?,” both published in the International Journal of Cultural Property.

Professor Gordon’s research delves into the history of international criminal law. This may be seen for instance in pieces such as “International Criminal Law’s ‘Oriental Pre-Birth’: The 1894-1900 Trials of the Siamese, Ottomans and Chinese,” in The Historical Origins of International Criminal Law, “The Trial of Peter von Hagenbach: Reconciling History, Historiography and International Criminal Law,” in Untold Stories: Hidden Histories of War Crimes Trials, and “The Forgotten Nuremberg Hate Speech Case: Otto Dietrich and the Future of Persecution Law,” published in the Ohio State Law Journal. Professor Mitchell’s research considers the history of international law, as reflected in pieces such as “International Law as a Coercive Order: Hans Kelsen and the Transformation of Sanction,” published in the Indiana International and Comparative Law Review, “Manchukuo’s Contested Sovereignty: Legal Activism, Rights Consciousness, and Civil Resistance in a ‘Puppet State,’’ published in the Asian Journal of Law and Society, and in his forthcoming Recentering the World: China’s Reception and Contention of International Law.

Professor Roberts’ research focuses on the historical evolution of approaches to public order legality within the British Empire. This research is illustrated in pieces such as “From the State of Emergency to the Rule of Law: The Evolution of Repressive Legality in the Nineteenth Century British Empire,” published in the Chicago Journal of International Law, and “Experiments With Suppression: The Evolution of Repressive Legality in Britain in the Revolutionary Period,” forthcoming in the Loyola Los Angeles Journal of International and Comparative Law.