Law and Politics of Religious Fraud Regulation: Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong

Date & Time: September 18, 2025 (Thursday) 11:30-12:30

Venue: Academic Conference Room, 11/F Cheng Yu Tung Tower, The University of Hong Kong

Language: English

(In-person event)

Abstract:

In this seminar, I critically compare the legal tools used in Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong to punish religious claims and practices that are considered false or fraudulent by the state. I explain how such legal tools are used to sustain a hierarchy of religion, and their importance to religious freedom (or the violation thereof). I further investigate the reasons behind the use of these legal tools, and highlight the complicity of individuals who otherwise advocate for rights and freedom.

Speaker:

Jianlin Chen is Professor and Associate Dean (International) at Melbourne Law School. He grew up in Singapore and Taiwan. He obtained his LLB from National University of Singapore, and his LLM and JSD from the University of Chicago. He joined the Melbourne Law School in 2017 after starting his academic career at the University of Hong Kong in 2011.

His current primary research interests are law & religion and criminal law, with a particular focus on fraud (e.g., religious fraud regulation, fraudulent sex criminalization) and through a combination of comparative perspectives and economic analysis. Together with other research projects that traverse diverse subject matters (e.g., natural resources, property, corporate & securities, government procurement, culture war, charity, tax), his underlying research agenda is to develop an overarching theoretical inquiry that 1) explores how the different forms of state actions—ranging from law, regulation, tax, state ownership, public contract, government speech—have surprisingly similar capacity and propensity (or the lack thereof) to achieve public interest objectives; and 2) critically evaluates the prevailing approach of prescribing distinct legal constraints and normative considerations for each category of state actions.

Chair:

Hui Jing is Assistant Professor of Law and Deputy Director of the Philip K. H. Wong Centre for Chinese Law at The University of Hong Kong.

This is an in-person event for the audience. Prior registration is required. Please visit http://bit.ly/4flgBcJ  to register. For inquiries, please email Louisa at .

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