China-EU School of Law trains European jurists on investing in China
10.03.2009
Professional training for lawyers, scholars and entrepreneurs
In an effort to improve the ongoing legal dialogue between the People's Republic of China and the nations of Europe, the China-EU School of Law will be holding a professional training seminar for lawyers, legal scholars, and business executives on the legal framework supporting investment in China. The two-day course, „Foreign Investment in China – Secrets of a Boom“ will take place on 21 and 22 May 2009 in Budapest and offers a comprehensive overview of legal questions in respect of foreign investment in China. Lecturing on the basic structure of Chinese law will be Dr. Knut B. Pissler from the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg. As the Max Planck Institute research fellow responsible for China he has for many years followed the legal developments in China and has maintained the Institute's long tradition of research in regards to China. Together with Prof. Dr. Stefan Messmann of the Central European University, Pißler is responsible for the organisation of this training's educational progam in Budapest. To be conducted in English, the program costs 800 Euros and has a registration deadline of 17 April 2009.
The program is geared towards those for whom the topic „Law in China“ has professional relevance. Invited to attend are lawyers, corporate counsel, jurists, and business sector participants who wish to improve their knowledge of Chinese law and acquire practical knowledge in respect of Chinese-European economic and legal relationships. Speakers experienced with the Chinese business culture will provide insight on jurisprudence and practice. Seminar themes are to include the foundations of Chinese law as well as intellectual property rights and joint ventures in China. Current issues in the fields of competition law and employment law will also be outlined.
Dr. Knut B. Pissler of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg – an associated institute in the China-EU School of Law consortium – is organising the event. In Budapest he will introduce the main features of Chinese law as relates to foreign investment. „We have been able to secure for the professional training program speakers and attorneys with many years of Chinese business experience, individuals who have come to understand Chinese idiosyncrasies and conventions through their work on location. This knowledge is of fundamental importance for investment practice in China.“, remarked Knut Pissler. "The Program links academic substance with practical experience. Budapest was consciously chosen as the host city since many businesses from China have settled there.“
The still young China-EU School of Law in Beijing (CESL) features professors and lecturers from the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law Hamburg, the University of Hamburg and the Bucerius Law School in Hamburg. With a master's degree program for Chinese students, professional training programs for Chinese judges and European attorneys as well as with CESL advisory activities, the School of Law hopes to bring European and Chinese legal relationships closer together. With the realisation of "Foreign Investment in China - Secrets of a Boom", the first professional training program for European jurists, another step towards closer relations is being achieved. These three important and substantive pillars of the Law School will shape the legal understanding of future Chinese decision makers and represent our European conception of the law. The EU Commission has financed the CESL with an initial endowment of 35 million Euros. The project represents one of the most significant European-Chinese cooperative legal efforts being undertaken by the EU in the coming years.
For further information on the training program and for registration:
Prof. Dr. Stefan Messmann,
Head of Legal Studies, Central European University Budapest
messmann@ceu.hu
or
Dr. Knut B. Pissler
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law Hamburg
pissler@mpipriv.de
Background Information
About the China-EU School of Law
In 2008 on behalf of the European Commission and the People's Republic of China, a university consortium under the leadership of the University of Hamburg established the China-EU School of Law (CESL) in Peking. With financial support totalling 35 million euros, the CESL is one of the most prominent European-Chinese cooperative legal projects that will be undertaken by the EU in the coming years. The Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law is an associate in the consortium. Involved participants include the Universities of Madrid (Spain), Bologna (Italy), Robert-Schuman Strasbourg (France), Sciences Po Paris (France), Lund (Sweden), Leuven (Belgium), Manchester (Great Britain), Krakow (Poland) and Maastricht (Netherlands) as well as the Central European University (Hungary), the Eötvos Lorand University (Hungary) in Budapest und the Trinity College Dublin (Ireland). For China's part, the China University of Political Science and Law (CUPL) and the Tsinghua University will participate, both located in Peking. The consortium is being significantly supported by the Bucerius Law School, the Max Planck Institutes in Hamburg, Heidelberg, Munich and Freiburg, the Europa-Kolleg Hamburg and several European law firms.
The official inauguration of the CESL took place on 23 October 2008. The CESL has already commenced a two-year graduate program in European law which results in the conferral of a Chinese as well as a European master's degree. Beginning in November 2008 the university will offer professional training modules in various legal fields for Chinese judges, government attorneys and lawyers. Additionally, a Chinese-European research and consultation institute will be erected with the task of providing advice and academic counsel on the reform of Chinese legislation. The first CESL research workshop took place on 10th and 11th January 2009.
About the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law:
The Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law is dedicated to performing foundational research in the areas of comparative, European and international private law, commercial law, business law and procedural law. It accomplishes its mission by methodically analysing foreign legal systems and by comparing them both with German law and with each other. An important goal of the research performed at the Max Planck Institute in Hamburg is to explore the possibilities of legal harmonisation within Europe and worldwide. In view of increasing globalisation this is a task of great academic and practical significance. The Institute library possesses one of the most comprehensive collections of civil law literature to be found in the world. www.mpipriv.de
Further information:
Contact Persons for the Media:
Press and Public Relations
Nicola Wesselburg,
Juliane Koop
Mittelweg 187
20148 Hamburg
Tel.: 040/41900-367 (-377)
presse@mpipriv.de
Internet: www.mpipriv.de