Staff profile

Professor Lei Chen (PhD) is the Chair of International Arbitration and Chinese Law and the Deputy Dean for Strategic Development and Internationalisation at Durham Law School, Durham University. He is a titular member of the International Academy of Comparative Law and an ordinary member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Since 2013, Prof Chen has also been a Fellow of the European Law Institute. In 2022, he founded the Durham International Dispute Resolution Institute (DIDRI), where he currently serves as Director.

Beyond his role at Durham, Professor Chen is an Adjunct Professor at the City University of Hong Kong, where he teaches EMBA and MPA courses in partnership with Tsinghua University’s School of Public Policy and Management. He is also an Honorary Professor at the University of Galway, Ireland, a visiting Wenlan Chair at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, and an adjunct professor at  Shandong University. With a proven track record in promoting international activities and managing external relations, Professor Chen has effectively fostered academic partnerships and alums engagement. During his tenure as Deputy Dean at the City University of Hong Kong, overseeing external links, the university achieved notable global rankings in the Times Higher Education Law Subject Rankings, placing 25th in 2019 and 31st in 2020. In 2019, City University of Hong Kong Law School was also ranked No. 1 worldwide in international outlook and No. 1 in Asia for industry income.

In 2024, Professor Chen was appointed to the International Commercial Expert Committee of the Supreme People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China. Additionally, he serves as a non-local member of the Social and Behavioural Sciences sub-panel for the University Grants Committee (UGC) in Hong Kong, where he assesses research proposals and selects external peer reviewers. 

Professor Chen’s research focuses on comparative private law and international arbitration. He has published extensively in these areas in legal journals, edited volumes of multidisciplinary scholarship, interdisciplinary journals and monographs. His publications include monographs on Chinese Property Law, Transition and Trend (CUP), Chinese Condominium Law (Intersentia), Contract Law in China (Kluwer), edited volumes on Trends in International Dispute Resolution (Springer), Comparative Consumer Sales (Routledge), The Legal Protection of Personality Rights in Europe and China (Brill); and numerous articles in leading law and interdisciplinary journals such as Legal Studies, Journal of Contemporary China, Legal History Review, European Review of Private Law, International Journal for the Semiotics of Law, and Northwestern Journal of International Law and Business. He holds dual LLB degrees from both civil and common law jurisdictions and has secured multiple research grants, including four General Research Funds from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council. He has served as an external reviewer for grant bodies in the USA, Hong Kong, the UK, Israel, Poland, and Australia, and as an institutional reviewer for the 2020 Hong Kong Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). Currently, he leads a multi-volume project on article-by-article English commentary of the Chinese Civil Code.

 As a panel arbitrator and mediator with leading institutions such as HKIAC, SCIA, KCAB, CIETAC, BAC, SHIAC, AIAC, CAA, and THAC, Professor Chen is also a Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators. Active in international academic networks, he advises global organizations and governments, frequently providing expert opinions across arbitration institutions and courts, including Hong Kong, the PCA in The Hague, Washington D.C., Geneva, Singapore, and England.

Professor Chen is an editorial board member for Humanities and Social Sciences Communications (Springer Nature), Comparative Legal History (Hart), Chinese Journal of Comparative Law (OUP), Asia Pacific Law Review (Taylor & Francis), China-EU Law Journal (Springer), and European Journal of Comparative Law and Governance (Brill). He also serves as an editor and advisor for the book series Chinese and Comparative Law (Brill) and Commercial Law in Asia (Singapore Academy of Law).

In addition to his research and teaching, Professor Chen has supervised 12 PhD, JSD, and MPhil students across diverse areas, including property, contract, civil procedure, company law, and commercial arbitration. He has also served as an external PhD examiner at institutions such as Monash University, Leiden University, Maastricht University, the University of Manchester, King’s College London, the University of Helsinki, Erasmus University Rotterdam, and the University of Hong Kong.

Selected Grants

1. Addressing Impediments or Hardship to Contract Performance: A Comparative Study of the Common Law in Hong Kong and Chinese Law, General Research Fund (GRF), Research Grant Committee (RGC), Hong Kong Government, Amount: HKD $512,904, July 2021, Lei CHEN (Co-I), Qiao Liu (PI), Ewan Mckendrick (Co-I)
2. The Availability of Specific Performance in Chinese Courts: An Empirical Assessment, General Research Fund (GRF), Research Grant Committee (RGC), Hong Kong Government, Estimated Amount: HKD $460,000, Jan 2016 - Jul 2018, Lei CHEN (PI).
3. Understanding Property Transitions: The Emergence of Rural Land Markets in China, General Research Fund (GRF), Research Grant Committee (RGC), Hong Kong Government, Amount: HKD $510,000, Jan 2015 - Jun 2017, Lei CHEN (PI) .
4. Assessing Property Relations and Formalizing Condominium Ownership in China, General Research Fund (GRF), Research Grant Committee (RGC), Hong Kong Government, Amount: HKD $499,000, Nov 2012 - Nov 2015, Lei CHEN (PI) .
5. Contract Law in China and Europe: A Comparative Approach, EU-China Research Grant, 2011 - 2014, Co-I Jan Smits (PI).
6. Comprehensive Analysis of Diversity of Legal Systems in Asia-Pacific Region and Convergence towards Establishment of Rule of Law, Private University Research Branding Project, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science & Tech日本文部科學省, Amount: JPY $3,500,000, 2017 - 2018, Co-PI (Lei CHEN); Prof. Nobuyuki Sato (PI) .
7. Cross-border Data Transfer among Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, Research Project commissioned by Microsoft Int. Policy Research Grant, Amount: HKD $360,000, 2018 - 2019, Lei CHEN (PI).

• Comparative contract law
• Condominium Law
• Corporate and commercial law
• International arbitration
• Property law

• 2024: Ordinary Member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts: Ordinary Member of the Europea Academy of Sciences and Arts
• 2023: Editorial Board Member for Humanities & Social Sciences Communications ( SJR 2022 Q1): Humanities and Social Sciences Communications (nature.com)
• 2022: Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts:
• 2022: Honorary Professor of School of Law, University of Galway, Ireland:
• 2022: External Examiner of SOAS Law School:
• 2022: Editorial committee member of Asia Pacific Law Review: Asia Pacific Law Review Editorial Board (tandfonline.com)
• 2021: Titular Member of the International Academy of Comparative Law/Académie internationale de droit comparé: Members by Country and Status | AIDC - IACL
• 2021: Member of the Research Grant Committee of the Society of Legal Scholars (SLS): Committees - Society of Legal Scholars
• 2020: Editor of the Chinese Journal of Comparative Law published by OUP: Editorial Board | The Chinese Journal of Comparative Law | Oxford Academic (oup.com)
• 2020: Adjunct Professor of City University of Hong Kong: Dr CHEN Lei | School of Law (cityu.edu.hk)
• 2020: Advisor board member for Commercial Law in Asia book series by Singapore Academy of Law: Commercial Law in Asia | Singapore Academy of Law (sal.org.sg)
• 2020: Law Panel Member of Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2020 Hong Kong: Membership (ugc.edu.hk)
  
• 2019: Visiting Professor at Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore: NUS Law welcomes Visiting Professors – September 2019 - NUS Law
• 2019: Visiting Professor at Harry Radzyner Law School, Reichman University: Visiting Professors | Reichman University (runi.ac.il)
• 2017: International Editorial Board member of Comparative Legal History (SJR 2022 Q1): Comparative Legal History Editorial Board (tandfonline.com)
• 2016: Visiting Professor at College of Law, National Taiwan University (summer school): S5_Civil_Law.pdf (ntu.edu.tw)
• 2015: International Fellow of the Philip K.H. Wong Centre for Chinese Law, University of Hong Kong: People | Philip K.H. Wong Centre for Chinese Law (hku.hk)
• 2014: Fellow of the European Law Institute:
• 2012: Founding editor of the Chinese and Comparative Law Book series published by Brill (SCOPUS indexed): Chinese and Comparative Law Series (brill.com)
• 2011: Advisory board member of European Journal of Comparative Law and Governance: European Journal of Comparative Law and Governance | Brill

Authored book

• Chen, L. (2010). The Making of Chinese Condominium Law. Intersentia

Chapter in book

• Chen, L. (2023). The Security Interests in Chinese Law: Some Nuances. In H. Jiang, & P. Sirena (Eds.), The Making of the Chinese Civil Code: Promises and Persistent Problems (131-152). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009336611.007
• Promises and Persistent Problems. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009336611
• Chen, L., & Wang, H. (2020). Judicial Control over Arbitral Awards in Mainland China. In L. DiMatteo, M. Infantino, & N. Potin (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Judicial Control of Arbitral Awards (208-223). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316998250.018
• Wang, J., & Chen, L. (2019). Regulating Smart Contracts and Digital Platforms: A Chinese Perspective. In L. DiMatteo, M. Cannarsa, & C. Poncibò (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Smart Contracts, Blockchain Technology and Digital Platforms (183-210). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108592239.010
• Chen, L. (2018). Relaxations of Contractual Privity and the Need for Third Party Rights in Chinese Contract Law. In M. Chen-Wishart, A. Loke, & S. Vogenauer (Eds.), Formation and Third Party Beneficiaries (45-63). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198808114.003.0003
• Chen, L. (2018). The Evolution of the Property System in China: Between the Socialist Heritage and Liberal Market. In H. Fu, J. Gillespie, P. Nicholson, & W. Partlett (Eds.), Socialist Law in Socialist East Asia (385-405). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108347822.014
• Chen, L. (2017). Damages and Specific Performance in Chinese Contract Law. In L. Chen, & L. Dimatteo (Eds.), Chinese Contract Law: Civil law and Common Law Perspectives (377-403). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316816912.016
• Chen, L., & Dimatteo, L. (2017). History of Chinese contract law. In L. Chen, & L. Dimatteo (Eds.), Chinese Contract Law: Civil law and Common Law Perspectives. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316816912.002
• Chen, L. (2016). Availability of Specific Remedies in Chinese Contract Law. In M. Chen-Wishart, A. Loke, & O. Burton (Eds.), Remedies for Breach of Contract (21-42). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof%3Aoso/9780198757221.003.0002
• Chen, L. (2014). The Legal and Institutional Analysis of Land Expropriation in China. In F. Hualing, & G. John (Eds.), Resolving Land Disputes in East Asia: Exploring the Limits of Law (59-85). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9781107589193.006

Edited book

• Chen, L., Ge, J., He, J., Liu, Q., Wu, Z., & Xiong, B. (Eds.). (2021). The Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China: English Translation. Brill Academic Publishers
• Chen, L., & Janssen, A. (Eds.). (2020). Dispute Resolution in China, Europe and World. Springer Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42974-4
• Oliphant, K., Zhang, P., & Chen, L. (Eds.). (2018). The Legal Protection of Personality Rights in China and Europe. Brill Academic Publishers
• Civil and Common Law Perspectives. Cambridge University Press
• Howells, G., Twigg-Flesner, C., Micklitz, H., & Chen, L. (Eds.). (2017). Comparative Consumer Sales Law. Routledge
• Comparative and Historical Perspectives. Brill Academic Publishers

Journal Article

• Chen, L. (2024). Self-governing organizations and culture: addressing condominium law developments in China. Journal of Property, Planning and Environmental Law, 16(1), 20-35. https://doi.org/10.1108/jppel-04-2023-0014
• Chen, L. (2024). Will Virtual Hearings Remain in Post-pandemic International Arbitration?. International Journal for the Semiotics of Law - Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique, 37(3), 829-849. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-023-10054-7
• Wu, Z., & Chen, L. (2023). Revisiting property transfer theory: English law and Chinese law compared. Legal Studies, 43(2), 259-277. https://doi.org/10.1017/lst.2022.36
• Chen, L. (2023). Court-ordered Apologes: A Chinese Law Position. European Review of Private Law, 31(5), https://doi.org/10.54648/erpl2023043
• Chen, L., Liu, Z., & Tang, Y. (2022). Judicial Transparency as Judicial Centralization: Mass Publicity of Court Decisions in China. Journal of Contemporary China, 31(137), 726-739. https://doi.org/10.1080/10670564.2021.2010871
• Chen, L., & de Rey, S. (2021). Non-Monetary Relief for Breach of Contract: A European Perspective on Chinese Contract Law. Asia Pacific Law Review, 29(2), 325-345. https://doi.org/10.1080/10192557.2022.2033086
• Chen, L., & Wang, Q. (2021). Demystifying the Doctrine of Change of Circumstances under Chinese Law—A Comparative Perspective from Singapore and English Common Law. Journal of Business Law, 6, 475-496
• Chen, L. (2021). Continuity and Change: Some Reflections on the Chinese Civil Code. Asia Pacific Law Review, 29(2), 287-305. https://doi.org/10.1080/10192557.2022.2033084
• Group, C.-1.-. C. L. R., & Chen, L. (2020). Consumer Law and Policy Relating to Change of Circumstances Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Consumer Policy, 43(3), 437-450. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-020-09463-z
• Chen, L., & DiMatteo, L. (2020). Inefficiency of Specific Performance as a Contractual Remedy in Chinese Courts: An Empirical and Normative Analysis. Northwestern journal of international law & business, 40(3), 275-332. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3492796
• Liu, J. Z., & Chen, L. (2020). Jury trial and public trust in the judiciary: evidence from cross-countries comparison. Asia Pacific Law Review, 28(2), 412-436. https://doi.org/10.1080/10192557.2020.1867794
• Chen, L. (2019). Specific Performance as a Contractual Remedy in Chinese Courts: An Empirical Study. Chinese Journal of Comparative Law, 7(1), 95-123. https://doi.org/10.1093/cjcl/cxz007
• Chen, L. (2018). Debating Personality Rights Protection in China: From a European Perspective. European Review of Private Law, 26(1), 31-55. https://doi.org/10.54648/erpl2018003
• Wang, J., & Chen, L. (2018). Will Innovative Technology Result in Innovative Legal Frameworks? – Smart Contracts in China. European Review of Private Law, 26(6), 921-942. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316816912
• Chen, L. (2014). Land Registration, Property Rights and Institutional Performance in China: Progress Achieved and Challenges Ahead. Hong Kong law journal, 44(3), 841-864
• Chen, L., & Sng, G. (2014). Whither Adverse Possession in Hong Kong? Some reflections on the Consultation Paper by the Hong Kong Law Reform Commission. Conveyancer and Property Lawyer, 2014(5), 413-429
• Chen, L., & Kielsgard, M. (2014). Evolving Property Rights in China: Patterns and Dynamics of Condominium Governance. Chinese Journal of Comparative Law, 2(1), https://doi.org/10.1093/cjcl/cxt016
• Kielsgard, M., & Chen, L. (2014). The Emergence of Private Property Law in China and Its Impact on Human Rights
• Chen, L. (2010). The Developer’s Role in the Surging Chinese Condominium Housing: Through the Comparative Lens of the US System. Asia Pacific Law Review, 18(2), 233-242. https://doi.org/10.1080/10192557.2010.11788234
• Chen, L. (2010). Private Property with Chinese Characteristics: A Critical Analysis of the Chinese Law on Property of 2007. European Review of Private Law, 18(5), 983-1004. https://doi.org/10.54648/erpl2010073
• Chen, L. (2010). The historical development of the Civil Law tradition in China: a private law perspective. https://doi.org/10.1163/157181910x487350
• Mostert, H., & Chen, L. (2010). The Dynamics of Constitutional Property Clauses in the Developing World: China and South Africa. Maastricht Journal of European and Comparative Law, 17(4), 377-405. https://doi.org/10.1177/1023263x1001700403
• Chen, L., & van der Merwe, C. (2009). Reflections on the role of the managing agent in South African and Chinese condominium legislation. https://doi.org/10.10520/ejc55232
• Chen, L., & Mostert, H. (2007). The Unavoidable Necessity of Formalizing Condominium Ownership in China: A Pilot Study. Asian Journal of Comparative Law, 2(1), 1-30. https://doi.org/10.1017/s219460780000003x

Monograph

• Chen, L. Chinese Property Law: Transition and Trend. Cambridge University Press. Manuscript submitted for publication