To provide a well-rounded legal education to those who already possess a first degree in a non-law discipline (or a law degree from a non-common law jurisdiction) and who wish to enter the legal profession in Hong Kong or who want to equip themselves for a career in law-related employment.

The School of Law prepares you for the legal profession and for law-related careers in the public service and private enterprise. Our law degree particularly meets the need of those who would like to join the legal profession in Hong Kong, or look for other law-related opportunities in Mainland China and the Asia-Pacific region.

The CityU JD Programme is highly competitive. It seeks elite students with outstanding credentials in order to hone them into exemplary legal professionals.

To be eligible for admission, you must satisfy the following entry requirements:

• a bachelor's degree in a non-law discipline; or

• a bachelor's degree in law from a non-common law jurisdiction, which was obtainable after at least eight semesters of full-time study.  Holders with a degree in law from a common law jurisdiction are NOT eligible to apply.

English Proficiency Guidelines 

For applicants whose entrance qualification is obtained from an institution where the medium of instruction is not English, the minimum English language proficiency requirement will be:

• a TOEFL score of 100 (internet-based); or
• a band score of 7.5 or above in IELTS, with no individual score below 6.5, and a minimum score of 7.0 in the Academic Writing; or
• a total score of 520 in the Chinese mainland's College English Test (Band 6).

(TOEFL and IELTS scores are considered valid for two years. Applicants are required to provide their TOEFL / IELTS test results obtained within the two years preceding the commencement of the University’s application period. For CET-6 scores, the validity period is three years.)

^#Applicants are required to arrange with the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to send their TOEFL results directly to the University. The TOEFL institution code for CityU is 3401.

In order to develop them into exemplary legal professionals, JD students must complete 72 credits comprising:

- Required courses: Legal Methods, Research and Writing and Hong Kong Legal System; 

- Electives offered in JD, LLM and LLMArbDR programmes.

- Core courses required for admission to the Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL) Programme and the legal profession in Hong Kong are:

• Commercial Law 
• Company Law I and II
• Constitutional Law
• Administrative Law
• Criminal Law I and II
• Equity & Trusts I and II
• Law of Contract I and II
• Law of Evidence
• Law of Tort I and II
• Land Law I and II

Stream

JD students have an option to specialise in any one of the following areas:

• International Commercial Law
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Chinese and Comparative Law

JD and LLB lectures will be given together in most courses. Tutorials are held separately.

The CityU MBA programme is also offered to JD students who wish to gain concurrent knowledge in business and in law, to expand their employment opportunities. JD students will have the opportunity to earn their JD and MBA degrees in a fast-track mode over three years.

The Juris Doctor (JD) is a degree recognized for the purposes of application to the PCLL, a practical training programme that may be completed to enter the legal profession in Hong Kong.

• CityU Law School is the first law school in Hong Kong that offered a JD programme.
• You will have the opportunity to complete a JD at CityU and an LLM at renowned overseas institutions including Georgetown University (USA), University Paris 1 (France) and Université de Fribourg* (Switzerland) via an accelerated path.
• You will have the opportunity to complete the CityU JD and MBA in three years.
• You can elect to study an intensive summer course at University College Oxford (U.K.).
• You can join Legal Placements in HK law firms, government departments, banks and international companies, plus courts in mainland China and overseas NGOs.
• You can join exchange studies at an overseas university in Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Korea, Singapore, Sweden, Taiwan, the Netherlands, UK and USA.
• Extensive professional training will be provided to students to sharpen their advocacy skills for participation in international mooting competitions.
• You can interact with world-class scholars on cutting-edge issues without leaving the CityU campus.
• Some courses have been included in the list of reimbursable courses for the Continuing Education Fund (CEF). For application details, please refer to http://www.wfsfaa.gov.hk/cef/en/index.htm.
• Outstanding applicants are eligible for scholarships.
• Financial support is provided to students for participation in overseas-learning activities, mooting competitions and overseas placements.
• Short-term elective courses are taught by renowned scholars.

* subject to renewal

Course Descriptions
School of Law