The fifth Asian Law School Deans’ Forum was held in Singapore from 20^th to 21^st February 2017. Over 70 law school deans and professors from China, Australia, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, South Korea, Japan and other Asia-Pacific areas attended the forum. About twenty deans and professors from ten law schools in mainland China formed a Chinese delegation and attended the forum. Dean Prof. Feng Guo from Wuhan University School of Law attended the forum and gave keynote speech.

The theme of the forum is “Challenges and Cooperation Faced with Asian Legal Education under Globalization”. The participants centered on six sub-themes of the forum. The first sub-theme is “The Role of Asian Law Schools”, about how to balance the roles that Asian Law Schools play in national, regional and global level. Prof. Feng Guo analyzed the transition of roles that Asian law schools played and the social responsibilities and new missions brought to legal education by social transformation from the perspective of Asian national rise and international status. He indicated the crucial influence that Asian law schools are to exert over the future development of Asia, and put up pertinent suggestions for legal education reform under the new circumstances. Besides, Prof. Feng Guo also discussed about how Asian law schools shall keep their diversity and cooperation during their development and how they shall share their achievements and deal with complicate challenges under the wave of globalization.

It is reported that the Asian Law School Deans’ Forum was initiated by the Renmin University of China School of Law to provide Asian legal education professionals with a platform to exchange achievements and promote cooperation so as to make it a mechanism to promote legal education cooperation and teaching resources integration in Asia-Pacific region. Ever since 2001, the forum has been held in Beijing (Renmin University of China School of Law), Hainan (Hainan University School of Law), Beijing (Renmin University of China School of Law) and Seoul (Korean University School of Law); each brought significant results.

Translated by Zhang Xiaoshan