Prof. Kelvin Kwok
Associate Professor
Biography
Kelvin HF Kwok is an Associate Professor affiliated to the Faculty of Law and the Centre for Private Law at The University of Hong Kong (HKU). He is a Deputy Director of the Asian Institute of International Financial Law, where he is the convenor of the Consumer Law and Policy Seminars. He co-directs the Competition Law and Policy Specialisation of the LLM programme, having recently served as the Associate Dean (Academic Affairs) of the Faculty of Law.
He has a broad interest in theory and doctrine at the intersections of law, economics, and philosophy, with particular expertise in antitrust/competition, consumer protection, and contracts. He has published with reputable peer-review journals including Law Quarterly Review, European Law Review, Common Law World Review, American Business Law Journal, European Business Organization Law Review, Antitrust Law Journal, Journal of Competition Law & Economics, and BMC Medical Ethics. His monograph Hong Kong Competition Law: Comparative and Theoretical Perspectives (co-authored with Thomas Cheng) was published by Cambridge University Press.
He has advised on a wide range of competition and consumer matters as a practising barrister at Des Voeux Chambers, a non-governmental advisor to the International Competition Network, and a co-opted member of the Consumer Council.
He graduated from HKU with a double degree in business and laws, both with First Class Honours and ranking first in his cohort. He subsequently obtained his LLM (with High Honours equivalent) from the University of Chicago and his DPhil (passed without corrections) from the University of Oxford. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA).
Research Area
- Competition Law
- Consumer Law
- Private Law
- Law and Technology
- Law and Economics
- Legal Theory / Jurisprudence
Research Area
- Competition Law
- Consumer Law
- Private Law
- Law and Technology
- Law and Economics
- Legal Theory / Jurisprudence
Select Publications
Monograph
Hong Kong Competition Law: Comparative and Theoretical Perspectives (Cambridge University Press 2021) (with Thomas Cheng)
Book Chapters
“Procedural Fairness in Hong Kong Competition Law” in Daniel Sokol and Andrew Guzman (eds), Antitrust Procedural Fairness (Oxford University Press 2019) 112-130 (with Thomas Cheng)
“The Belt and Road Initiative: Co-operation in Trade Liberalisation and Antitrust Enforcement” in Yun Zhao (ed), International Governance and the Rule of Law in China under the Belt and Road Initiative (Cambridge University Press 2018) 104-131
Journal Publications
“The Relationship between Statutory Illegality and Common Law Illegality” (2026) 142 Law Quarterly Review (in press)
“Rethinking the Antitrust-Securities Interface” (2026) 63 American Business Law Journal (in press)
“An Autonomy Theory of Consumer Protection Law” (2024) 86 Antitrust Law Journal 411-472 (awarded the Research Output Prize 2025)
“The Conundrums of the Reasonable Patient Standard in English Medical Law” (2023) 24 BMC Medical Ethics 15 [article number] (with Eric Ip and Shing Fung Lee)
“Abuse of Dominance in the Hong Kong Television Sector” (2022) 45 World Competition 445-472
“Land-related Restrictive Covenants in Restraint of Trade” (2021) 137 Law Quarterly Review 193-198
“‘Hub-and-spoke’ Bid-rigging and Corporate Attribution under Hong Kong Competition Law” (2020) 8 Journal of Antitrust Enforcement 223-231 (one of the 10 academic articles in the Asian Antitrust category selected for the 2021 Concurrences Antitrust Writing Awards)
“Optimal Deterrence, the Illegality Defence, and Corporate Attribution” (2020) 20 European Business Organization Law Review 641-664 (with Ernest Lim) (awarded the Research Output Prize 2020)
“Object and Intention under Article 101 TFEU: Lessons from Australia, New Zealand and Analytical Jurisprudence” (2019) 48 Common Law World Review 114-141
“The Concept of ‘Agreement’ under Article 101 TFEU: A Question of EU Treaty Interpretation” (2019) 44 European Law Review 196-221
“Re-conceptualizing ‘Object’ Analysis under Article 101 TFEU: Theoretical and Comparative Perspectives” (2018) 14 Journal of Competition Law & Economics 467-492 (awarded the Research Output Prize 2019; one of the 9 academic articles in the Concerted Practices category selected for the 2019 Concurrences Antitrust Writing Awards)
“Judicial Control of Local Protectionism in China: Antitrust Enforcement Against Administrative Monopoly on the Supreme People’s Court” (2017) 13 Journal of Competition Law & Economics 549-575 (with Eric C. Ip) (one of the 9 academic articles in the Asian Antitrust category selected for the 2018 Concurrences Antitrust Writing Awards)
“A Neglected Theory of Harm: Joint Ventures as Facilitators of Collusion Across Markets” (2017) 5 Journal of Antitrust Enforcement 434-457 (with Thomas K. Cheng) (one of the 7 academic articles in the Concerted Practices category selected for the 2017 Concurrences Antitrust Writing Awards; won the Readers’ Vote and one of 2 finalists considered for the Best Academic Antitrust Article in the Concerted Practices category)
“Antitrust Enforcement and State Restraints at the Mainland China-Hong Kong Interface: The Importance of Bilateral Antitrust Co-operation” (2017) 12 Asian Journal of Comparative Law 335-369
“The Standard of Proof in Civil Competition Law Proceedings” (2016) 132 Law Quarterly Review 541-547
“Protection of a Reputable Foreign Trader’s Legitimate Interests under the Law of Passing-off” (2016) 132 Law Quarterly Review 186-192
“Google Book Search, Transformative Use, and Commercial Intermediation: An Economic Perspective” (2015) 17 Yale Journal of Law & Technology 283-318
“The Rule in Seldon v Davidson and the ‘Absence of Basis’ Approach Revisited in Hong Kong” (2015) 23 Restitution Law Review 128-133 (with Martin Kok)
“The New Hong Kong Competition Law: Anomalies and Challenges” (2014) 37 World Competition 541-567 (awarded the Research Output Prize 2015; shortlisted for the journal’s Young Writers’ Award 2014)
“Liability of Online Service Providers for Defamatory Content: The Case of Discussion Forums” (2014) 130 Law Quarterly Review 206-211
“A New Approach to Resolving Refusal to License Intellectual Property Rights Disputes” (2011) 34 World Competition 261-286 (shortlisted for the journal’s Young Writers’ Award 2011)
“A Rule of Reason Approach to the Antitrust Issues of the Google Book Search Settlement” (2011) 10 DePaul Business & Commercial Law Journal 1-53 (one of the 24 academic articles in the General Antitrust category selected for the 2012 Concurrences Antitrust Writing Awards)
“Unlocking the Potential of Creative Commons for Hong Kong’s Education and Creative Sectors” (2010) 40 Hong Kong Law Journal 381-415