Guest Lecture: Chinese Law and Policy Diffusion in the Global South

Royal University of Law and Economics, Cambodia

Guest Lecture

November 30, 2022.

2.00pm: Opening Speech and Guest Presentation by Mr. Paul Mornet, Director, Dual Degree Programs in International Law, RULE.
2.10pm: Presentation on ‘’Chinese Law and Policy Diffusion in the Global South’’ by Pr. Matthew Erie, Oxford University.
3.00pm: Q & A with audience members.
3.40pm: Closing remarks by Mr. Paul Mornet.

Abstract
To what extent does China engage in legal development assistance in developing countries? While this question may seem technical, it potentially has broad implications for economic modernization, access to justice, human rights, security, and geo-economics. As with other capital-exporting countries, China is incentivized to shape the rules of the international economic system and, to the extent possible, influence legal development in host states. From trade law and international investment agreements to data governance and international law enforcement, China actively seeks to affect international law. At the level of host states, China has in recent years engaged in “legal cooperation” across a range of issues including commercial risk mitigation and dispute resolution. Yet, China encounters multiple challenges in doing so, some external (e.g., the US-China trade war) and some internal (e.g., China’s preference for “non-interference” as a foreign policy and the nature of the legal goods it supplies). This talk will provide an analytical frame to understand these developments and offer some examples.