The Asian Legal History Association (ALHA), the first sustained institutional platform dedicated to Asian legal history research and cross-border academic collaboration in the region, hosted its official launch in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
The Association, initiated by the Chinese University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law, brings together 21 leading law schools and research institutes spanning 17 jurisdictions, including China, India, Japan, Singapore, Germany and more, with CUHK Law serving as the Secretariat.
Speaking at the launch event, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok described ALHA as a “landmark initiative” that creates a platform for scholars and practitioners to trace how laws and legal systems were shaped by historical context—and how these exchanges continue to influence legal reform, governance, and the administration of justice in Asia.
“Legal history offers us not just archives or records of ancient statutes, but also serves as a living narrative of how societies, through centuries of trial and error, have sought to regulate human relationships,” he said.
Paul Lam Ting-kwok emphasized Hong Kong's unique and significant systematic strengths under the One Country, Two Systems.
Lam highlighted Hong Kong’s unique status as China’s only common-law jurisdiction, tracing its legal evolution from colonial origins to its development under the Basic Law and One Country, Two Systems framework.
He noted that, between 2018 and 10 February 2026, 66 Hong Kong court judgments were cited by overseas courts, including those in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Canada, and Dubai, underscoring the city’s international legal standing.
“Through conferences, research collaborations and projects, I am sure that the ALHA will foster an ongoing cross-jurisdictional dialogue on legal history that transcends geography and ideology, thereby contributing significantly to the legal study and exchanges in Asia and beyond,” he said.
Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK Dennis Lo Yuk-ming said that the establishment of ALHA marks an important milestone for international legal scholarship and Hong Kong’s unique role in the region’s legal history and its development.
Dennis Lo Yuk-ming noted that CUHK Law is honored to serve as the standing Secretariat of the Association.
He noted the launch coincides with the 20th anniversary of CUHK Law, reflecting the university’s commitment to international academic engagement and regional leadership.
“By advancing research into the historical foundation of different legal systems in Asia, the Asian Legal History Association seeks to contribute to this foundation and to support meaningful and durable connectivity in the region,” he said.
Secretary of the ALHA and Associate Professor at CUHK Law Christopher Roberts revealed that the association originated from a 2021 online international conference that drew nearly 160 global participants and gradually evolved into an annual event hosted across Asia.
Compared with established American and European legal-history associations, ALHA can help address the substantial gap in scholarship on Asian legal history, which remains “extensively underexplored”.
Christopher Roberts noted that legal histories of Asian jurisdictions are still a field that is extensively underexplored.
He said ALHA will continue to invest in its annual conferences — the sixth is scheduled in Malaysia — and expand events hosted by partner institutions.
It will provide funding for member scholars to develop projects and papers, and plans to publish conference proceedings on its new website.
Longer-term priorities include creating collaborative research projects and exploring publication outlets to disseminate members’ work.
