With its predecessor of International Law Department being established in 1985, International Law Faculty of the East China University of Politics and Law was established in March 2003, aiming at bringing up more legal professionals engaging in foreign economic exchanges and foreign affairs so as to meet the need of China’s economic reform and the world’s globalization trend. Adhering to the guideline of “Face to the World, Face to the future and Face to the modernization” as well as the spirit of “Pursuing Perfection and Excellence”, the Faculty has been devoting itself to bringing up the advanced international law professionals with bachelor, master and doctoral degrees.

――Teaching Staff
The Faculty has an excellent team of the high sense of responsibility, activeness and competency. There are at present 43 faculty members, with the teaching staff of 29, among them 9 professors, 7 PhD tutors, and 12 associate professors. About 90% of the teaching staff holds a foreign degree or has experiences of studying abroad, for instance, in the U.S., the UK, France, Germany, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Switzerland, and Netherlands. Every year the Faculty also sends teachers to teach courses in some foreign universities. So far, the academic team of the Faculty has been developed into one with integrated subjects and sound structure. More and more young scholars have taken a leading role in certain field of international law studies.

For many times, the Faculty was honored as the “Excellent Collectivity” and “Excellent CCP Branch” by the Ministry of Justice of the PRC, Shanghai Municipal Government, and Shanghai Education Committee. Many faculty members also won national and local governmental awards individually for their academic achievements and teaching performance.

―― Discipline Construction
The Faculty’s International Law subject has been confirmed as the Key Discipline by the Ministry of Justice of the PRC since 1996, and meanwhile, as the Key Discipline by the Shanghai Education Committee. In 1998, the Faculty became the first one in East China who has the authority to grant Doctor Degree in Law (in International Law direction). The ECUPL started the postdoctoral program in 2004 and since then the Faculty has been recruiting postdoctoral students majored in International Law.

The Faculty has three research institutes: the Research Centre of International Law, the Research Centre of the WTO, and the Research Centre of International Shipping and Maritime Law.

So far, the Faculty has published more than 150 textbooks, works, dictionaries and collections on International Law. Some of the works are the fruits of national key projects, some win national awards and some win local government awards. Moreover, some leading works even filled a gap in certain domestic research areas.

――Foreign Exchange
The Faculty is situated in Shanghai, which is to be built into the international trade and financial centre as well as the international shipping centre of China. A large quantity of legal professionals equipped with economic knowledge and strong language skills are therefore highly demanded. To meet this need, the Faculty has been dedicating in building up foreign relationships. Each year, leading professors from foreign law schools are regularly invited to give lectures for the undergraduate students and graduate students. This offers a great opportunity to the students not only to improve their language skills but also to learn the updated development in the related legal research. Teachers are also sent abroad for a variety of academic exchanges. The Faculty builds up a formal cooperation relationship with San Francisco University Law School (United States) and Erasmus University Law School (the Netherlands). In 1999, the Faculty’s library was appointed by the UN as one of the UN Documents Depositary Library. In 2005, the Faculty welcomed Judge Shi Jiuyong, the Chief Justice of the International Court of Justice.

Each year, the Faculty selects candidates from the senior undergraduate students to go abroad to study, and that year’s graduates to pursue LL.M degree in foreign universities. Starting from 2003, Korean University of Law and Commerce provides the full scholarship for 2 or 3 graduate students of the Faculty to join its 2-year-long LL.M program. In average, there are 15% of the undergraduate students get an opportunity to study abroad every year. In 2004, the Faculty and the Hong Kong City University Law School signed a joint LL.B program agreement, according to which the first international cooperative class came into existence in the next September.

――Social Practice
Apart from the academic activities, the Faculty members also pay much attention to the social practice. Professor Cao Jianming, Vice-President of the Supreme People’s Court, chaired twice the legal workshops for the CPC Central Committee Members. Professor Zhu Lanye is selected as one of the three WTO panelists from China. Professor Ding Wei is currently the Deputy Director of the Shanghai Commission for Politics and Law of Municipal Committee of the CPC.

The Faculty has participated in several important national legislative activities, such as Competition Law, Marginal Sea and Contiguity Zone Law, Corporate Law, Guarantee law, Foreign Trade Law, Arbitration Law, Regulation on Anti-dumping and Countervailing Measures, and Regulation on Safeguard Measures. In the codification of Shanghai’s local ordinances, such as Regulation on Product Liability on Import and Export Products, Provision on Anti-exorbitant profiteering and Price Fraud, Regulation on Protection and Development of Post and Telecommunication, and Regulation on Works of Unlogging Harbors, the Faculty played an active role as well. In addition, the Faculty has undertaken many key research projects of the national, ministerial and local level, such as “Changes of the EC Integrated Market and China’s Countermeasures”, “Legal Issues of China’s Foreign Investment”, “Studies on Shanghai Local Legislations”, “Impact of the Resuming GATT Membership on the Attraction of Foreign Investment and Its Countermeasures”, “China’s Resuming GATT Membership and Shanghai Local Legislation”, “Studies on Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone Regulations”, “Sino-EU Legal and Judicial Co-operation Project”, and “WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism”.

The faculty members also take active part in legal practice. More than 10 professors serve as arbitrators in China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Committee, Shanghai Arbitration Committee, and other city Arbitration Committee. About 30 are part-time lawyers. Their legal practice enriches both the teaching and research stuff, linking closely the conceptual knowledge with the legal practice.

Upon its accession to the WTO, China has been increasingly involved in the world’s globalization trend. The International Law discipline thus gets an unprecedented development opportunity. The Faculty, backed by its abundant professional resources as well as strong teaching and research competence, will continue to strive for constructing a top-ranking key discipline, and bringing up more and more advanced legal professionals.

Description of the Discipline
Name: Law (International Law direction)
Duration: 4 years
Degree to be granted: Bachelor in Law