Faculty of Law Université de Montréal. The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund

Transcription

1 Faculty of Law Université de Montréal The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund

2 The Inspiration for the Fund: Pierre Elliott Trudeau ( ) A graduate of the Faculty of Law of Université de Montréal (LL.L. 1943), later a distinguished constitutional law professor in the same ( ), and recipient of an LL.D. honoris causa from his alma mater in 1987, former Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Elliott Trudeau has been the foremost and most emblematic Canadian political leader of the latter half of the 20th century, leaving an incommensurable and enduring mark on the nation s internal and international policy, whose impact defines the country to this day. Having toured China with colleagues in 1960, Pierre Trudeau was one of the first Western visitors to have access to China since the revolution of In 1968, he published with Jacques Hébert, a prominent journalist and later a senator, Two Innocents in Red China, now a Canadian classic, wherein the described China s rapid progress towards becoming a central player in the world economy and politics. The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund 1

3 As Prime Minister, Trudeau sought to strengthen and affirm Canada as an independent and powerful voice in world affairs. This international stance, and his foresight about China s potential, led him to expand Canada s relations with China very early on during his terms. Indeed, under his government, Canada was the first North American nation to recognize the People s Republic of China and to establish true diplomatic relations with the PRC Government in On his first visit as Prime minister, in 1973, Pierre Trudeau was personally welcomed to Beijing by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and met with Chairman Mao. At this occasion, Premier Trudeau and Premier Zhou Enlai signed a Trade Agreement, which marks the beginning of the bilateral official trade. During that visit and the subsequent one, in 1983, Prime Minister Trudeau consistently established working relationships of mutual trust with Chairman Mao, and later his successor, Deng Xiaoping. Canada thus became one of China s closest friends on the international scene, helping to make the world more cognizant of the complexity and richness of Chinese culture, and the country s potential for growth. Four decades later, China having undeniably established itself as an economic and strategic leader on the international scene, Trudeau s foresight has not only proven to have been accurate, but his stance towards China is now the norm amongst contemporary world leaders. Trudeau s legacy was instrumental in opening the world s leaders to the importance and central role of China, and vice versa. The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund 2

4 Pierre Elliott Trudeau s vision and openness, truly inspiring in more than one regard, is a model to follow for fostering cultural relations between China and Canada, and the rest of the world. A fund in his name constitutes a just tribute to his legacy, as well as a strong statement from the Faculty about its belief in the continued development of the Sino- Canadian relationship. The Faculty of Law of Université de Montréal The Faculty of Law of Université de Montréal is one the largest law schools in Canada; It houses a large number of graduate law students and graduate programmes (600 graduate students enrolled in 21 programmes); Its students consistently obtain the best scores at the Quebec Bar Admission Test and are the likeliest to find employment outside the University s home region; It houses the Research Center on Public Law (CRDP), Canada s first and foremost legal research center, established in 1962 by Pierre Elliott Trudeau, amongst others; It houses the Center for Business Law and International Commerce, which is a leader on governance and economic analysis of the law; It benefits from the diverse legal perspectives of professors trained in Quebec s dual legal tradition, civil law and common law, as well as those of many countries around the world; Its J.D. Programme in North American common law prepares its graduates to practice in several jurisdictions around the world. The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund 3

5 Relationship with China Over the past 15 years, under the leadership of its current Dean, Guy Lefebvre, and the participation of many of its faculty members and staff, the Faculty has built an extensive network of collaborations and partnerships in China and has headed many bilateral projects, among which: Training programmes for Chinese Supreme Court Justices sponsored by Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), where the Université de Montréal was the principal partner ( and another session planned for 2014); The creation of a Summer School on Chinese law held at the China University of Political Science and Law (CUPL) that has allowed over 500 Canadian law students over 10 years to acquire basic training in Chinese law; The creation of a Summer School for Chinese students in 2006, which has trained over 200 outstanding Chinese law students on Canadian law; The establishment, in 2007, of a Master of Laws in Business Law in a Global Context for foreign-trained legal professionals, mainly from China, which has granted over 200 LL.M. degrees to students who have thereafter obtained positions in Chinese and Canadian law firms and leading businesses; The signing and implementation of cooperation agreements with some of the best law schools in China: Wuhan University, China University of Political science and Law, East China University of Political Science and Law, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Macau University; The establishment of the Sino-Canadian Law Research Center at the Chinese University of Political Science and Law, to mark 10 years of collaboration between both institutions; The establishment of a cooperation agreement with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Leading Think Tank in Asia). The Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau Sino-Canadian Scholarship Fund 4

6 General Purpose of the Fund and Scholarships Managed by the Faculty, the funds raised could permit the financing of: Scholarships encouraging students, Canadian and Chinese, to pursue training, graduate studies and research on Sino-Canadian law or on Sino-Canadian social realities impacting law; Opportunities to attend summer schools, conferences and colloquia for Canadian and Chinese students in Canada and/or in China; Internships for Canadian and Chinese students on Sino-Canadian law in Canada or in China; and Incentives or prizes for scholarly publications on subjects relating to Sino-Canadian law. Reciprocity and openness are the main objectives of this ambitious West-East educational funding project. Funding Goal For this purpose, the Faculty aims to collect at least five hundred thousand dollars ( $). The annual interest on capital of the Fund will be used to finance the different projects. Contact : Guy Lefebvre, Dean and Professor Fellow, Center for Public Law, Institute of Law, Chinese Academy of Social Science Medal of Merit, China University of Political Science and Law Canadian Director, Sino-Canadian Law Research Center, China University of Political Science and Law Visiting Professor, China University of Political Science and Law Visiting Professor, East China University of Political Science and Law (Shanghai) Adjunct Professor, University of Macau Faculty of law Université de Montréal C.P. 6128, Succursale Centre-ville Montreal, (Quebec), Canada, H3C 3J7 Telephone: Fax: guy.lefebvre@umontreal.ca 5