REGULATIONS FOR THE POSTGRADUATE
DIPLOMAS IN COMMERCIAL LAW (PDipComL),
IN THE LAW OF THE PEOPLE'S
REPUBLIC OF CHINA (PDipL[PRC]) AND
IN PUBLIC LAW (PDipPubL)

(See also General Regulations, pp. 1 to 16)
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Bachelor of Laws (LLB)

Master of Laws (LLM)

Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL)

Postgraduate Diplomas in Commercial Law (PDipComL),
in the Law of the People's Republic of China (PDipL[PRC])
and in Public Law (PDipPubL)

Postgraduate Diploma in Common Law (PDipCL) and the Master of Common Law (MCL)

Admission requirements

LL 25 To be eligible for admission to the courses leading to the Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Law or the Postgraduate Diploma in the Law of the People's Republic of China or the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Law, a candidate shall

(a)

 comply with the General Regulations; and

(b)

 (i) hold the degree of Bachelor of Laws with honours of this University; or
  (ii) hold a degree in law from another university or comparable institution accepted for this purpose; or
  (iii) have been admitted to the professional practice of law in Hong Kong or in a territory or country other than Hong Kong; or
  (iv) have obtained either the Common Professional Examination of England and Wales or the Common Professional Examination Certificate of this University provided that in either case the candidate has also obtained a second class honours degree of this University or from another university or comparable institution accepted for this purpose.

A candidate for admission under Regulation (b)(ii), (b)(iii) or (b)(iv) above shall produce evidence of sufficient academic attainment and shall satisfy the examiners in a qualifying examination if such an examination is required. A candidate who fails to meet the requirements of (b)(iv) above by reason only of the fact that his or her degree is not of at least second class honours standard may, nevertheless, be admitted provided that the Faculty Higher Degrees Committee is satisfied that by reason of his or her background, experience and professional qualifications, if any, the candidate is fit to follow the courses.

Qualifying examination

LL 26

(a)

 A qualifying examination may be set to test the candidate's formal academic ability or his ability to follow the courses of study prescribed. It shall consist of one or more written papers or their equivalent and may include a project report.

(b)

 A candidate who is required to satisfy the examiners in a qualifying examination shall not be permitted to register until he has satisfied the examiners in the examination.

Award of postgraduate diplomas

LL 27 To be eligible for the award of the Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Law or the Postgraduate Diploma in the Law of the People's Republic of China or the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Law a candidate shall

(a)

 comply with the General Regulations; and

(b)

 complete the curriculum and satisfy the examiners in accordance with the regulations set out below; or

(c)

 have satisfied the examiners in the equivalent of two relevant full courses of instruction leading towards the degree of Master of Laws by part-time study.

The award of the Postgraduate Diploma to a candidate under (c) above shall be determined in circumstances as deemed appropriate by the Faculty Board on the recommendation of the Faculty Higher Degrees Committee.

Curriculum

LL 28 The curriculum shall comprise a minimum of 150 hours of prescribed work normally extending over one academic year of part-time study. To complete the curriculum a candidate shall

(a)

 follow the equivalent of two full courses of instruction;

(b)

 satisfactorily complete all prescribed written and other work;

(c)

 satisfy the examiners in each course of instruction by either assessed written work carried out during the course or a written examination at the end of the teaching programme or both; and

(d)

 satisfy the examiners in an oral examination if such an examination is required.

LL 29 A full course of instruction is one which is taught over a period of two semesters and a half course of instruction is one which is taught over a period of one semester.

Failure to satisfy the examiners

LL 30 A candidate who has failed to satisfy the examiners in a course or courses of instruction may be permitted

(a)

 to attend a supplementary examination; or

(b)

 to repeat the course or courses of instruction in the following academic year and to re-take the prescribed examination or examinations; or

(c)

 to re-take the prescribed examination or examinations in the following academic year without repeating the course or courses of instruction; or

(d)

 to undertake the study of an alternative course or courses of instruction in the following academic year and to take the prescribed examination or examinations.

LL 31 A candidate who is not permitted to present himself for re-examination in any paper or papers in which he has failed to satisfy the examiners shall be recommended for discontinuation of studies under General Regulation G 12.

Absence from an examination

LL 32 A candidate who is unable through illness or other acceptable reason to attend for examination may apply for permission to attend for examination at some other time.

Examination results

LL 33 At the conclusion of the examination a pass list shall be published in alphabetical order. A candidate who has shown exceptional merit at the whole examination may be awarded a mark of distinction and this mark shall be recorded in the candidate's postgraduate diploma.

SYLLABUSES FOR THE
POSTGRADUATE DIPLOMAS


OBJECTIVES

The Postgraduate Diplomas are offered by the Department of Law to meet the need of the Hong Kong legal community for shorter, specialized postgraduate law courses.

LENGTH OF CURRICULUM

The Postgraduate Diplomas extend over one academic year of part-time study.

COURSE OF STUDY

Each candidate is required to follow instruction through the medium of lecture courses, seminars and small group tuition.

STRUCTURE

Candidates shall follow the equivalent of two full courses of instruction. On accepting a place, candidates shall notify the Faculty Higher Degrees Committee of the Faculty of Law of the courses which they intend to follow. The selection of courses by each candidate shall be subject to approval by the Faculty Higher Degrees Committee which may require the candidate to undertake preliminary study before embarking upon certain courses. Not all courses listed in the syllabuses may be available in any one academic year.

COURSEWORK

The Board of Examiners shall decide what proportion of the final assessment for each course of instruction shall be determined by written work carried out during the course. Candidates will be informed at the beginning of the course of the relative proportions of the final assessment to be derived from coursework and from written examinations which will be held at the end of the teaching programme.

COURSES OF INSTRUCTION

Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Law

Full Courses

  • · Admiralty
  • · Credit and security law
  • · Civil and commercial law in the People's Republic of China
  • · Intellectual property law
  • · International commercial transactions
  • · International dispute resolution
  • · Remedies
  • · Shipping law
  • · Taxation and tax planning

Half Courses

  • · Arbitration workshop
  • · Banking law
  • · Comparative insolvency law
  • · Construction law
  • · Hong Kong environmental law
  • · International air law: structure and organization
  • · Liabilities in international aviation
  • · Privacy and data protection
  • · People's Republic of China intellectual property
  • · Securities regulation
  • · Taxation in the People's Republic of China
  • · The law of restitution
  • · Transnational insolvency law

Postgraduate Diploma in the Law of the People's Republic of China

Full Courses

  • · Civil and commercial law in the People's Republic of China
  • · Introduction to Chinese law and legal system
  • · Trade and investment in the People's Republic of China

Half Courses

  • · Introduction to Chinese law
  • · People's Republic of China intellectual property
  • · Securities regulation
  • · Taxation in the People's Republic of China

Postgraduate Diploma in Public Law

Full Course

  • · Human rights law: theory and practice

Half Courses

  • · Advanced administrative law
  • · Equality and the law
  • · Hong Kong and international law
  • · Hong Kong Basic Law
  • · Hong Kong environmental law
  • · Human rights in Hong Kong
  • · International air law: structure and organization
  • · International criminal law
  • · International environmental law
  • · International humanitarian law
  • · Postmodern legal theory
  • · Privacy and data protection

For details of course outlines see syllabus for the degree of LLM.