Changing the way we think about law

01 Feb 2018

The health of our societies is directly connected to the way law works in them. 

Video: Precht on Patrick Ho's Corruption Trial

29 Jan 2018

My talk at the Foreign Correspodents' Club of Hong Kong about the U.S. bribery prosecution against former Hong Kong official Patrick Ho and its far-reaching implications. 

Notes of Experts Meeting on China and human rights

15 Dec 2017

The weakened immune system in this case is the West’s unwillingness to defend its own values.

How fair do we have to be?

11 Dec 2017

The flood of sex harassment accusations and of careers destroyed raises an important question. How much fairness do we owe to those who are accused?  

Time for the Big Two to rethink their China strategy

29 Nov 2017

The lack of evidence of effectiveness should prompt Amnesty and HRW to rethink their China strategy in a deep way.

Does Hong Kong need more think tanks?

21 Nov 2017

The rationale for think tanks is that they are idea factories -- sources of new thinking that may not occur to or be favored by governments. 

False Advertising by Foreign Universities in China

19 Nov 2017

Foreign universities in China are exposing themselves to big fines for false advertising. 

The soft imperialism of low expectations

10 Nov 2017

Avoiding criticizing China because the country is deemed exceptional is another form of Western superiority. 

What turns people into terrorists?

02 Nov 2017

The tragic events in New York this week remind me of the bombing attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 when I was appointed to defend the lead suspect. 

The Enablers of Harvey Weinstein and Xi Jinping

13 Oct 2017
Public Interest Law

Earlier this week in New York I heard a panel of experts discuss President Xi Jinping's vicious attack on China's human rights lawyers. I was struck with the parallel to Harvey Weinstein's sexual abuse of women in Hollywood. In both cases, powerful executives abused vulnerable victims and were aided by a culture of enablers: people who facilitated the abuses and those who knew but kept silent.

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