Legal experts brought together at Hong Kong conference by UM Law

By Katie Vloet U-M Law The University of Michigan Law School, the Chinese University of Hong Kong's (CUHK's) Centre for Financial Regulation and Economic Development, and the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies (LRCCS) at U-M brought together some of the world's top experts in the public and private enforcement of corporate and securities law at a Dec. 1314 conferenceâ?? in Hong Kong. The conference marked a significant milestone in global academic engagement by Michigan Law, as well as an occasion to examine the most critical issues affecting globalized capital markets and China's domestic legal system. "Public and Private Enforcement of Corporate and Securities Law-China and the World," was held at the Sha Tin campus of CUHK and featured keynote remarks by the Hon. Jed Rakoff of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York and Alexa Lam, JP, deputy chief executive officer and member of the Board Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong. In addition to the participation of seven Michigan Law faculty, the conference featured papers presented by academics and officials from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, India, and Japan. "This conference is a wonderful opportunity to explore critical issues pertaining to the protection of property rights under law, via both private and public enforcement, and in China and across the globe, in a truly comparative manner. It also directly showcases Michigan Law's unique strengths in U.S. and foreign corporate and securities law," said Nicholas C. Howson, professor of law at Michigan and a conference co-organizer with CUHK Professor Robin Huang Hui. "We are delighted to partner with CUHK and our own LRCCS to convene this unprecedented academic conference, which we expect will result in a published volume." The organizers' shared vision for the conference, Howson said, was to bring together top academics and state officials from around the globe and inside China "to engage in a truly comparative discourse about public and private enforcement of these critically important norms in different national jurisdictions and across borders." Conference papers addressed related issues in a specific jurisdiction or issue area, so that participants who specialize in the contemporary Chinese legal system can explore how these issues are considered abroad, and academics who do not specialize in Chinese law can gain greater insight into similar developments in China. "At just the moment China is once again undertaking wholesale amendment of its securities law, rather than celebrating the fact or possibility of convergence, we aim to understand ongoing divergence, and the reasons for it, even in the embrace of increasingly globalized capital markets," Howson said. In addition to Prof. Howson, an expert in Chinese corporate and securities law, six other Michigan Law professors presented papers at the conference: - Dean Mark D. West, the Nippon Life Professor of Law and an expert in Japanese corporate and securities law; - Michael S. Barr, the Roy F. and Jean Humphrey Proffitt Professor of Law and a former assistant U.S. Treasury secretary for financial institutions and key participant in the drafting of the Dodd-Frank statute; - Vikramaditya Khanna, the William W. Cook Professor of Law and an expert in Indian corporate and securities law; - Hwa-Jin Kim, William W. Cook Global Law Professor at Michigan and a professor of law and business at Seoul National University School of Law, and perhaps the ranking expert in Korean corporate and securities law; - Adam C. Pritchard, the Frances and George Skestos Professor of Law, a renowned expert in U.S. securities regulation; - Mathias W. Reimann, the Hessel E. Yntema Professor of Law, a comparativist who recently stepped down as editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Comparative Law. In addition, Professor Wang Liming, China People's University vice president, China People's Law School dean emeritus, and a former Michigan Law research scholar (1989-1990), presented at the conference on an enhanced private right of action in Chinese securities lawsuits.â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â?? Published: Mon, Jan 12, 2015