ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS
The main criteria for selection of JUPAS applicants are the HKALE and HKCEE results. There are no additional formal requirements for admission beyond the University entrance requirements, but applicants may be invited to attend interviews and/or take an aptitude test, the results of which will be taken into account in the assessment.
While academic results are the main criteria for selection, consideration may also be given to reports from school principals and performance at interviews.
Students not applying under the JUPAS mechanism will be considered on their own merits, and should give full details of their educational background, qualifications and experience. They may also be required to attend interviews and/or take an aptitude test.
Following the introduction of JD Programme in 2009-2010, the fast-track LLB programme admission is no longer to be offered by the Faculty. Accordingly, degree holders are not eligible for admission to the LLB programme. They are encouraged to apply the JD programme instead.
PROGRAMME AIMS AND FEATURES
The Bachelor of Laws (LLB) offers an education in fundamental legal concepts and subjects, as well as a liberal arts education in a wider sense. In 2004-2005, the LLB became a four-year programme, in line with recommendations made by government-appointed consultants and bringing Hong Kong into line with generally accepted international practice. The four-year LLB will provide students with greater opportunities to address the following challenges:
The first two years of the four-year LLB are designed to equip students with a solid foundation in legal knowledge and skills. In the third and fourth years, students will have a variety of optional courses to choose from, enabling specialisation in a law area, or acquisition of a minor in a non-law discipline, or specialisation in the following stream: Chinese law, Commercial, corporate and financial law, and International trade and economic law.
PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION
To practise law in Hong Kong, LLB graduates must pass the Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL) - a one-year full-time or two-year part-time course taught by the Faculty of Law at HKU (and by the City University of Hong Kong, and by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (from 2008-2009)). Thereafter, to become a solicitor a graduate must spend two years as a trainee solicitor in a law firm, or in the Department of Justice, while prospective barristers must do twelve months of pupillage. Admission to the PCLL offered by the Faculty of Law is open to law graduates of this University and other approved universities and similar institutions in Hong Kong and other recognised law qualification, acceptable to the PCLL providers may be able to demonstrate competence in the required core subjects. Admission is competitive. The selection criteria currently taken into account include the standard and origin of the applicant's first degree in law.
The LLB degree has also been recognised by professional bodies and universities overseas. The Law Society of England accepts it for exemptions from Part 1 of the Common Professional Examination, and exemptions may also be granted from certain papers in Part 1 of the Bar Final Examinations in England. Law graduates of the University regularly go on to study for higher degrees at prestigious universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, London and Stanford.
CAREER PROSPECTS
Hong Kong is a fascinating and stimulating environment for the study and practice of law because of its position as an international centre of trade and finance. Under the Basic Law, the existing law of Hong Kong will remain fundamentally unchanged for 50 years, which means that the Common Law, based on the English system, continues to apply. Hong Kong lawyers are playing a larger role in the modernisation of China, as well as in the constitutional and legal questions associated with the change of sovereignty. So Chinese law is also relevant. International trade and humanitarian law are becoming increasingly important too.
Many graduates of the Faculty are now serving the Hong Kong community as solicitors, barristers, magistrates and judges, corporate counsel and government lawyers. Others are teaching law in Hong Kong's three law schools. Some of our alumni have served as chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association, Permanent Judge of the Court of Appeal and Judges of the High Court. A good number have also been appointed Senior Counsel or joined the governing bodies of the legal profession in Hong Kong - the Bar Council of the Hong Kong Bar Association and the Council of the Law Society of Hong Kong.
Law graduates of this Faculty can also be found pursuing a wide range of careers which at first sight may seem to have little to do with law - though most of them probably find law relevant to aspects of their work. Some of our graduates become senior figures serving the business sector, political party leaders, cabinet members, chairpersons of statutory bodies senior civil servants and leading journalist.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Facilities
The Lui Che Woo Law Library, conveniently close to the Faculty, contains an extensive collection of legal materials from Hong Kong and the major Common Law and Pacific Rim jurisdictions, as well as a Chinese language collection. Its enthusiastic and helpful staff are always available to deal with enquiries and problems. The main University Libraries also has many books related to law, and other materials relevant for an understanding of the issues in society which form the context of law.
Students will also have access to computers for legal research and writing essays and assignments, some of which are housed in a computer workroom within the Law Faculty.
Teaching Methods
Under the four-year LLB, the Department of Law has active student-centred forms of learning. The core curriculum is taught through intensive small-size groups based on pre-assigned and pre-read material and active learning. Small group classes provide ample opportunities for student exercises and teacher feedback. Many courses also require or encourage the use of computers for learning or research.
In many courses students are expected to write essays which are designed to reinforce communication skills and encourage independent legal research. All students participate in a structured programme of moots (mock court argument), and some students move on to international mooting competitions. Group presentations or exercises are also an increasingly common feature.
Examination System
In each year of study, the degree examinations are usually held in December for first-semester 6-credit courses, and in May for second-semester 6-credit and the full-year 12-credit courses. In most courses, written assignments are counted towards the examination results.
International Experience
The Faculty has developed active programmes of exchanges and visits with law schools in the UK, China and other Pacific Rim countries, and elsewhere. It may be possible for a student, after completing the first year or second year of study, to apply to study for a semester or even a whole academic year, in another country, as part of The University of Hong Kong degree, or to study in a summer school in Hong Kong with students from other countries. Each year, about 15% of our students have been on exchange programmes, studying in Australia, Canada, Singapore, the UK, Europe or the USA.
Scholarships and Prizes
Donors from the profession and past students or teachers have made generous donations for prizes. As a result there is almost one prize for each subject, and also some awards for good overall performance. Some awards take into account contributions to the Faculty and/or the wider community, as well as leadership abilities. Similarly, there are a number of scholarships specifically for law students, tenable in the second, third and fourth years of LLB studies. These scholarships, apart from being prestigious, provide a useful contribution to fees or living expenses.
CONTACTS FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
| Tel: | 2859-2953 |
| Fax: | 2559-5690 |
| Email: | lawfac@hkusua.hku.hk |
| Website: | http://www.hku.hk/law/ |