ZJU holds International Forum on Rule of Law and Reform

The Third International Prominent Forum on the Rule of Law and Reform was held in Hangzhou on November 11-12. Hosted by Zhejiang University and supervised by the China Law Society, this year’s forum centers around Law and Society and helps consolidate academic wisdom for building a rule-of-law society.

This year’s forum was jointly organized by the National “2011 Plan” Collaborative Innovation Center of Judicial Civilization, Guanghua Law School, and the Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences. The forum’s success has laid a solid foundation for the fourth edition to be held next year.

Over 100 distinguished scholars and practitioners at home and abroad were invited to attend the forum. Participants discussed the frontier issues concerning social autonomy under the rule of law, voluntary compliance of law, and dispute resolution by the law, etc. They also explored the feasible means to promote economic development under the rule of law.

(From left: ZHANG Wenxian, WANG Huizhong, HU Yunteng, James Leonard Bacchus, WANG Zejian)

The forum was chaired by Professor ZHANG Wenxian, senior professor in ZJU’s Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences and honorary dean of ZJU’s Guanghua Law School. Professor ZHANG also serves as vice president of China Law Society and director of the Academic Committee of China Law Society.

WANG Huizhong, secretary and vice director of the Standing Committee of the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Congress, emphasized the importance of scientific legislation, democratic legislation, legislation by law and refined legislation, in combination with the practical experience on the further development of Zhejiang Province.

HU Yunteng, vice-ministerial full-time committee member of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court, introduced the way to promote social law and the construction of a rule-of-law society, from the relationship between the rule of law and reform measures.

James Leonard Bacchus, former chairman of the WTO Appellate Body, and director of the Center for Global Economic and Environmental Opportunity at the University of Central Florida, believed that rule of law and state governance are the common tasks for people all over the world.

WANG Zejian, honorary professor of Taiwan University and adjunct professor of Zhejiang University, emphasized the importance of constructing a system that relates social changes and structural reforms with the control of social risks under the rule of law, societal and legal security, and the achievement of social justice.

The other distinguished experts present at the forum included Braconnier Stéphane, professor of public law at Université Panthéon-Assas; LEUNG Mei-fun, chairman of Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal services of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong; WANG Minyuan, professor at Guanghua Law School; JI Weidong, dean of Koguan School of Law at Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Franz-Joseph Peine, professor at Goethe University Frankfurt.

For more details on the forum, please contact: Ms. HONG Jiaying (hongjy@zju.edu.cn), Guanghua Law School