Legal education giant’s first overseas outpost to open September 2019
The University of Law (ULaw) has today announced plans to open a campus in Hong Kong.
The legal education giant, which already has eight campuses in the UK, confirmed its new overseas outpost will start to receive students from September 2019, initially offering a range of face-to-face postgraduate law courses. The law school giant also said it hoped to launch a series of professional development and online training courses for qualified lawyers in Hong Kong as early as next spring.
A spokesperson for ULaw has told Legal Cheek that the courses will be delivered in English, but was unable to say whether or not UK law school staples including the Legal Practice Course (LPC) and Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) will be among those on offer.
Commenting on the thinking behind the Hong Kong campus, ULaw’s vice chancellor and CEO, Professor Andrea Nollent, said:
“We recognise Hong Kong’s position as an international legal and dispute resolution service hub, and it is therefore a significant market for The University of Law. Through a multi-million pound investment, we are ultimately looking to establish a long-term presence and operations in the region that will provide the same excellence in teaching and professional services to companies.”
ULaw’s new venture comes as Hong Kong’s Law Society considers placing restrictions on the activities of foreign lawyers.
Under the proposed rule changes, lawyers who have qualified outside of Hong Kong would only be allowed to provide legal advice on matters within their registered jurisdictions. In addition to this, international law firms located in Hong Kong would have to employ two local lawyers for each foreign lawyer, double the current quota.
A consultation on the controversial proposals closes next month.
