10 November 2025
On 16–17 October 2025, the Tsinghua–UNSW Joint Research Centre for International Commercial and Economic Law (JCICEL) convened its annual conference at Tsinghua University, bringing together scholars from Tsinghua University Law School and UNSW Law & Justice to explore how legal systems are adapting to technological disruption and shifting global economic dynamics.
The first panel, chaired by Dr. Lu Wang (UNSW) and featuring A/Prof May Cheong (UNSW), Prof. Simin Gao (Tsinghua University), and Prof. Leon Trakman (online) (UNSW), focused on digitization and commercial law, discussing how digital innovation is transforming product liability-centered framework for autonomous vehicles, the role of ESG criteria in bankruptcy, and rethinking technology service contracts in complex digital marketplaces.
The afternoon panel on the first day explored digital trade and investment chaired by A/Prof. Kun Fan (UNSW) with contributions from Dr. Lu Wang, A/Prof. Jonathan Bonnitcha (online) (UNSW) and Prof. Shiyuan Han (Tsinghua University). Speakers examined the growing prominence of national security exceptions and foreign investment screening mechanisms, alongside the practical application of the CISG in Chinese courts, highlighting the balance between global economic integration and domestic regulatory autonomy.
The second day had two panels discussing a variety of topics on emerging technologies, regulatory challenges, and dispute settlement. Chaired by Prof. Deborah Healey (UNSW), A/Prof. Ge Jiang (Tsinghua University), A/Prof. Alexandra George (online) (UNSW), and A/Prof. Shujie Feng (Tsinghua University), the first panel focused intellectual property in the context of AI-generated works, ranging from a cognitive economic analysis of AI user’s original expressive contribution, to reflections on intellectual property issues at the frontiers of neurotechnology, and the copyright-ability of AI-generated content.
A concluding panel chaired by Prof. Simin Gao (Tsinghua University) featuring Prof. Deborah Healey (UNSW), A/Prof. Kun Fan (UNSW), and A/Prof. Anton Didenko (UNSW) examined cutting-edge issues in competition law, investment arbitration, and financial regulation. The panel considered merger review under competition laws and the limits of regulatory error-correction, evolving arbitral approaches to climate-related investment disputes with greater emphasis on proportionality and investor due diligence, and the need for more coherent and harmonised regulation of financial infrastructures in increasingly digitalised and interconnected markets.
The conference concluded with closing remarks emphasising the value of ongoing comparative dialogue. Across all discussions, participants engaged with the central challenge of shaping legal frameworks that are coherent, fair, and responsive amid rapid technological and economic change.