19 undergraduate students from the ANU Law School have been on a trip of a lifetime to deepen their understanding of contemporary China. 

They participated in a China study tour led by Associate Professor Joshua Neoh, from 3 to 14 July 2026. 

Associate Professor Neoh said, 

"We travelled from the coast to the mountains: Shanghai for a bustling metropolis; Suzhou for its canals and stone bridges; and Anhui for its rustic charm." 

Over the two weeks, the cohort attended seminars on history, economics and law, connected with alumni, and visited universities and organisations from the business and legal sectors, exploring contemporary China from historical, political, legal, social, and business perspectives. 

One of the highlights of the tour included a visit to AllBright Law Office in Shanghai Tower, one of China's premier full-service law firms. There, students listened to an introduction session from Mr Shen Guoquan, Executive Director of AllBright, on the transformative role of artificial intelligence in the legal industry in China.  

The session was followed by a lively Q&A, where firm leaders answered questions from students and alumni about career development, industry trends, and the future of the legal profession. 

Course participants also attended a lecture on the Chinese legal system at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU). The two-hour lecture compared the legal systems of China and Australia, exploring the relationship between political structures, legal systems, and labour rights, and providing valuable Chinese context for understanding the relationship between law as it is written and how it is interpreted and enforced in practice.  

Participating student Hannah Vardy said, 

“The tour provided valuable cross-cultural insights and offered a rare opportunity to learn from experts in Chinese law, history, politics and economics that we wouldn’t have had access to otherwise.” 

The group also visited Etron, one of China's leading electronic manufacturing services companies, attended seminars on political economy, culture, and religion, and participated in cultural activities to make tofu, to weave bamboo, and to paint lanterns. 

The study tour gave students a deeper understanding of China's scale and diversity across its urban and rural, industrial, and agricultural contexts.  

Law student Kai Mitchell described the tour as 

“an incredible opportunity to see and experience China in a way that I never would have otherwise. Learning about Shanghai’s urbanisation, seeing approaches to industrialisation and business culture in Suzhou and concluding by visiting a rural village in Anhui provided unique perspectives on China’s historical and modern development.” 

A group photo of the cohort in front of a Chinese traditional pavilion. Image supplied by Joshua Neoh

The China study tour was supported by the Australian Centre on China in the World, with on-the-ground support from the ANU China Centre. Nancy Yu, Director of the ANU China Centre, said the trip was "a truly inspiring exchange that bridges Australian legal education with China's dynamic professional landscape."