Promoting Rule of Law and Human Rights in Asia
The U.S.-Asia Law Institute serves as a bridge between Asia and America, fostering mutual understanding on legal issues and using constructive engagement to advocate for legal progress.
New and Notable
Publications
The deepening polarization in South Korean politics triggered a constitutional crisis last December when President Yoon Seok-yeol declared martial law out of frustration with the opposition-controlled National Assembly. Eungi Hong writes that when the South Korean Constitutional Court upheld President Yoon’s impeachment, it sought to bridge the deep political divides and remind all citizens in clear, accessible language what it means to have a democracy. She also provides an unofficial English translation of the full court decision.
One of the most complicated topics in contemporary international relations is the status of the self-governing island of Taiwan and its government in Taipei, formally called the government of the Republic of China. In this Nov. 7, 2024 talk, Peter Dutton, a senior research scholar at the Paul Tsai Center at Yale Law School, explains the US view that title to the territory of Taiwan and the Penghu Islands did not revert to China after World War II, and remains “undetermined” in international law. The ROC, he says, is a self-declared state on territory whose status is ambiguous.
One of the most complicated topics in contemporary international relations is the status of the self-governing island of Taiwan and its government in Taipei, formally called the government of the Republic of China. During the 2024-2025 academic year, the U.S.-Asia Law Institute began inviting speakers to talk about Taiwan’s legal status from various perspectives. In this April 3, 2025 talk, Yu-Jie Chen, an assistant research professor at the Institutum Iurisprudentiae of Academia Sinica, explains how Taiwan defines itself in its own constitution, and how its “constitutional order” has evolved beyond the text of the constitution.
Institute News
Bruce Aronson, senior advisor at USALI’s Japan Center and an adjunct professor at NYU Law, was quoted by the Washington Post as saying that he is uncertain about the long-term impact of Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel.
June 8, 2025-June 14, 2025
Senior Chinese and US negotiators agree on a framework to get their trade negotiations back on track following a series of disputes; Hong Kong and Chinese national security police carry out their first known joint operation; Japan’s political parties fail to agree on new rules for political donations, with the scandal-ridden Liberal Democrats favoring a less restrictive approach; US President Donald Trump signs an executive order paving the way for a Nippon Steel investment in U.S. Steel; two South Korean courts postpone indefinitely criminal trials of newly elected President Lee Jae-myung; prosecutors in Taiwan indict four former members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party on charges of spying for China.
The U.S.-Asia Law Institute is seeking a research scholar! USALI research scholars advance the institute’s mission by informing the law school community and wider audiences about important legal developments in East Asia. They also support East Asian legal scholars and practitioners who visit or partner with USALI. Click through for details and how to apply.
June 1, 2025-June 7, 2025
A junior Chinese judge flees the country with up to 300 million CNY from a court account; Hong Kong prosecutors accuse former student activist Joshua Wong of conspiring with foreign forces against Hong Kong; a Japanese court reverses course and rules that former executives of the Tokyo Electric Power Company are not liable for failing to protect the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant against a tsunami; the day after Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung is sworn in as South Korean’s president, his party resumes the country’s toxic domestic politics; Taiwan’s Supreme Court finalizes sentences for ten persons convicted of making propaganda videos for China.
Bruce Aronson, senior advisor at the USALI Japan Center, tells Japan Times that talk of the US government holding a “golden share” in a possible Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel partnership is not meaningful without more detail about the proposed deal structure.
Program on International Law & Relations in Asia
Program on International Law & Relations in Asia
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