Annual Report 2003–04

the learning and development of law through research, particularly in the area of the region's different legal and constitutional traditions. The local community, especially the legal profession, has been extremely supportive of the proposal. The University is grateful for their advice and their confidence in its competence. The UGC's approval in May was good news for the whole University community and its supporters. The LLB Programme will begin admitting students in 2006 and the PCLL in 2007. A JD programme providing legal education to graduates of non-law subjects will be offered in 2006. Other postgraduate programmes will include a one-year taught LLM that offers a selection of specializations, as well as an M.Phil. and a Ph.D. programme, all to be launched in 2007. A Planning Committee for the School of Law has been set up under the chairmanship of Dr. Anthony Neoh, SC, member of the University Council. Generous donations from Dr. Lee Quo-wei and Dr. Simon F.S. Li will enable the founding of two named chairs in law. Dr. Lee Quo-wei has for many years been the chairman of the University Council; DR. Simon F.S. Li was a senior member of the Hong Kong judiciary and has been a major benefactor of CUHK. In addition, Mr. Warren Chan, SC, has made a generous donation in support of the law school while major collections of law books have been donated by C.Y. Kwan & Co. and Mr. K.K. Chu; the late Dr. C.Y. Kwan was the founding Council chairman of CUHK. The University is deeply grateful to them all. New Fortunes Tapped by New Opportunities While I was truly pleased with the establishment of the School of Law, my two-year tenure as Vice-Chancellor turned out to be most challenging. An unprecedented fiscal deficit suffered by the Hong Kong government has meant that the civil service and the subvented bodies were forced to retrench. As a core member of Hong Kong's education sector, the University must help to tackle the plight. In 2004-5, with an anticipated funding cut of 12.3 per cent, the University is faced with a budget shortfall of HK$384 million. To tackle the steep cut, cost-saving measures and plans for restructuring programmes and departments had to be formulated, with an aim to ensure that the University's core missions in teaching and research would not be compromised and that as many posts as possible could be retained. 大學敎育資助委員會於二零零四年一月發出文 件，闡釋受資助高等院校的個別角色，以及如何 提升香港高等敎育在國際上的競爭力。敎資會在 文件中肯定了中大的硏究型綜合大學角色。中大 同人定當自強不息，努力不懈地履行辦學使命， 在各個學術領域全面進行敎學與硏究，提供公共 服務，貢獻社會。設立法律學院，中大作為一所 硏究型綜合大學當更完整。十多年前，中大已有 設立法律學院的想法，我接任為校長後，即確立 其為首要工作目標。二零零四年三月，敎務會通 過二零零五至二零零八年度敎務發展建議，重點 包括設立法律學院，提供法律本科及硏究院課 程。 完善的司法制度，是香港成功的一個重要元素， 而香港對高素質法律人才的需求極大。中大法律 學院將招收成績優異的學生，為他們提供最好的 學習環境，訓練他們成為優秀的法律專才。中大 在人文學和社會科學領域素負盛名，法律敎育在 這雄厚的社會文化硏究氛圍內發展，當會更加豐 富。透過學術硏究，中大法律學院將會對法律敎 育及發展，特別是區內不同法律和憲法傳統這兩 方面，有所貢獻。 自本校設立法律學院的建議公開以來，社會人士 尤其本地法律界，紛紛表示支持，給與寶貴意 見，並肯定中大提供優質法律敎育的能力。 敎資會於五月宣布支持本校設立法律學院的建 議，不止令我，也令全校，乃至一直支持中大的 各界人士歡欣不已。我們已計劃於二零零六年招 收首批四年制法律學士（ LLB) 學生，並將為非法 律本科的畢業生開辦法學博士（ JD) 課程；二零 零七年開辦法學專業證書（ PCLL) 課程。其他亦 將在二零零七年開設的相關課程包括哲學碩士、 哲學博士和法學碩士等高級學位課程。 校長報告 Vice-Chancellor's Review 7