Shenzhen University (SZU) established its Department of Law in 1983, which was restructured into the Law School in 1997. Renowned legal scholars Gao Mingxuan, Li Zepei, and Dong Likun have served as department and school leaders. Over the past forty years, SZU has provided nearly 10,000 legal professionals for Shenzhen and even China.
The school adheres to the principle of fostering virtue through education, focusing on the quality of talent cultivation, and giving full play to its disciplinary advantages and distinctive features. It follows the comprehensive rule of law and local legal practices, striving in fields such as international and Hong Kong-Macao legal matters, the economic and social legal system, intellectual property rights, and science and technology law.
The school has also made significant contributions to implementing the "One Country, Two Systems" policy, realizing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) strategy, and promoting Shenzhen as a pioneering demonstration zone of socialism with Chinese characteristics and a model city of the rule of law.
In May 2021, the Central Committee for Comprehensive Law-Based Governance issued the Opinions on Supporting Shenzhen in Building a Pioneering Demonstration City of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Rule of Law, which explicitly stated that actions should be taken to support Shenzhen University in building a high-level law school and to strengthen theoretical and practical research of law-based city governance.
The development of the School thus entered the national planning level. The Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, Guangdong Province, and Shenzhen City attached great importance to it, providing an excellent policy environment for disciplinary development. The construction of a high-level law school has been included in Shenzhen's key support projects.
The school boasts a strong faculty, well-structured teams, and a reasonable disciplinary layout. It has produced two of the nation’s top ten outstanding young legal scholars and three of Guangdong’s top ten outstanding young and middle-aged legal scholars. Additionally, it has one Young Changjiang Scholars of the Ministry of Education, two New Century Excellent Talents of the Ministry of Education, and one national leading talent in intellectual property. Seven faculty members have served as president or vice president of the China Law Society's research associations. In recent years, young and middle-aged teachers have grown rapidly, aligning their academic plans with national priorities and achieving notable results in teaching and research, thus becoming a vital force in the school's vigorous development.
The school is characterized by the following features and advantages:
1. Geographical Advantages in Training Legal Talents for International and Hong Kong-Macao Affairs: International Law is a key discipline in the province, and the school was among the first to offer courses on Hong Kong and Macao law. In recent years, it has been approved for three provincial and ministerial-level international legal talent training programs. In 2023, it was selected as an "Innovative (Cultivation) Base for Collaborative Training of International Legal Talents" by the Ministry of Education and was recognized as an "Outstanding Collective in International Legal Construction in Guangdong Province."
2. Excellent Research Conditions in Economic Development and Technological Innovation: Focusing on the construction of Shenzhen as an international innovation-oriented city, the school has systematically laid out key emerging fields such as the digital economy, intellectual property, market mechanism optimization, and the application of cutting-edge technology. Targeting international frontier developments, the school consistently produces high-quality legal research outcomes, supported by a strong and dynamic team.
3. Nationally Leading Research Strength in Hong Kong Basic Law and Hong Kong-Macao Legal Studies: The school houses two national-level think tanks on Hong Kong-Macao research and eight other provincial and ministerial-level bases. It has produced a high volume of high-quality research outcomes, contributing actively to maintaining the central government's comprehensive jurisdiction over Hong Kong and Macao, promoting the integration of Hong Kong and Macao into the national development framework, and facilitating the alignment of rules in GBA.
