Michael Palmer is Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). He is also Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) and at the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies (HKIAPS) at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His publications are mainly in the field of comparative legal studies and give particular attention to Chinese law, both traditional and modern. Michael has been Joint Editor of the Journal of Comparative Law for more than a decade and is also Editor of the journal Amicus Curiae. He is a barrister at Serle Court and at McNair Chambers. He has been a special adviser to the Attorney-General of Hong Kong, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the European Commission, and also recently served as (very probably) the first western dean of a mainland Chinese law school.