Dean of UCL Laws meets with alumni, students and law schools in Beijing visit

Last month, Professor Eloise Scotford (Dean of UCL Laws) embarked on a highly successful trip to Beijing, where she spoke at key events and met with prospective students, UCL alumni, and representatives from top law schools.

As part of the week-long visit, Professor Eloise Scotford engaged with prospective students interested in studying at UCL Laws, with support from Dr Sophie Mu (Senior Liaison and Recruitment Officer at UCL). The first event, on 22 November, was hosted by Herbert Smith Freehills LLP and supported by Monica Sun (Partner and UCL Laws alumna), Andrew Ng (Andrew W.Y. Ng & Co and Chair of UCL Hong Kong Club), Professor Olga Thomas (Vice-Dean Education, UCL Laws) and Aaron Zhou (UCL Laws alumnus and partner, Han Kun Law Offices). Professor Scotford delivered a presentation about the high quality and inclusive student experience offered at UCL Laws and introduced key elements of the LLB and LLM programmes.  

 

Professor Scotford also addressed top law students at Peking University, Tsinghua University and Renmin University of China, where she spoke about pursuing a postgraduate degree in law at UCL, and the benefits of studying the 10-month LLM at UCL, for expanding legal understanding and skills and also for developing career opportunities. Professor Scotford met with members of the leadership teams at the three law schools, to forge new networks and lay the foundation for future partnerships. The discussions highlighted potential research collaborations in the future, with a focus on environment law – a topic high on the agenda in China. 

 

Professor Scotford also engaged with UCL Laws alumni at special events. On 21 November, the UCL Club of Beijing hosted a dinner and panel event on ‘Trends in International Business Law’, featuring UCL Laws alumni speakers. Following the talk with prospective law students at Herbert Smith Freehills, another alumni panel event was held on ‘Global Legal Education and Careers in Law’. Professor Scotford discussed the current trends in global mobility of students in undergraduate and postgraduate legal education, and the types of careers UCL Laws students go on to have, highlighting the significant advantages of dual legal education in China and the UK. Distinguished alumni Monica Sun, Andrew Ng and Catherine Wang (Tianyuan Law Firm, UCL Law alumna) reflected on the impact of studying in other jurisdictions on their careers, and on how current Chinese students and graduates are building legal careers. Both events were well-attended by UCL and UCL Laws alumni, fostering the rapidly growing alumni networks in China and highlighting their enthusiasm for UCL and its impact on their careers. 

Alongside her visit in China, Professor Scotford spoke at the Better Air Quality Conference 2023, in Manila, Philippines, co-organised by Clean Air Asia, Asian Development Bank & Climate and Clean Air Coalition. She presented the work of two major UNEP reports that she authored on air quality legislation globally, and exchanged research connections with people working in the field of air pollution and the environment.

Professor Scotford said:

“The trip was a huge success, and I would like to thank Dr Sophie Mu, Andrew Ng, Monica Sun and Mujtaba Ghaus for all their support leading up to and during my week in Beijing. I learned a lot from the valuable opportunities speaking with the best and brightest law students in Beijing and our esteemed alumni there; and I hope to continue working with the law schools with whom I met. I look forward to my next trips to China, and returning in the near future.” 

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