Welcome to the website of the NUS law school.

As you browse through the website, you will be struck by the sheer vibrancy of the NUS law school. The website showcases the talented faculty at the law school, the breadth of its curriculum, the bright and diverse students, and many of the other things that make a great law school. Most importantly, it will give you a sense of the community that comprises the law school; a vibrant, thriving community of people dedicated to the study of the law.

At the NUS law school we continue to relentlessly pursue a goal that has existed since our establishment in 1957. Simply put, it is to offer the best legal education possible. With this goal in mind, we periodically review our curriculum to ensure that it keeps up with changing circumstances as the law must be responsive to the needs of the wider society that it serves. Our most recent curriculum review was completed in 2002 and led to a number of innovations, one of which is the first comprehensive legal writing programme in Asia. Foundational subjects continue to be taught in small groups, a luxury long since abandoned by most law schools. We also offer a wide range of elective subjects from the theoretical to the practical as well as a number of specialist Master of Laws programmes such as our most recent LLM in Maritime Law, LLM in Asian Legal Studies and NYU@NUS - our double LLM degree programme with NYU.

At the same time, we demand a lot from our students. If you are a student here, you will be constantly challenged to think about things and to do things that will be unfamiliar to you. The faculty at the law school expect a great deal from you. We want you to grow as individuals and to discover the depths within yourselves that you probably never knew existed. At the same time, just as we expect a great deal from you, my colleagues and I recognise that we must play our part to inspire you, to bring new ideas and methodologies to you, and to engage you in a dialogue that has taken place for millennia, and that will continue to take place for as long as humanity exists, for law is part of the glue that holds societies together.

Just as teaching is important, so too is research for a law school must advance the boundaries of legal scholarship. Legal academics must continue to think about how laws can be improved in the quest for a more just and equitable society. At the NUS law school, faculty are engaged in the great legal issues of the day such as terrorism laws, corporate governance, environmental protection, social justice, and the impact of technology on society.

Teaching and research do not take place in a vacuum. Faculty at the NUS law school work with various governmental organisations, public bodies, civic groups, and international organisations to bring our specialist knowledge to bear on real problems and issues. Faculty are also members of tribunals, they regularly argue cases before the courts or arbitral bodies, and have been appointed as arbitrators. All this adds to the richness that faculty bring to the classroom and their research. At the same time, it reflects the institutional idealism that is a key trait of the NUS law school.

The quality of a law school is reflected in its students. The alumni of the NUS law school include leaders of the legal profession, government ministers, Supreme Court judges, ambassadors, community leaders, social workers and more. At NUS we like to think that we don’t just give our students a law degree, we also inculcate in them a sense of purpose and a calling.

I hope you enjoy browsing through our website. If you are considering applying to read law at the NUS law school, I hope that I will have the opportunity in the near future of welcoming you personally to NUS.


Professor Tan Cheng Han, S.C.