Legal scholar Michael Wilkinson, who taught many of Hong Kong’s lawyers, including its first chief justice, dies at 74
- Leading HKU land law expert was suffering from cancer, but insisted on teaching even after undergoing chemotherapy
Hong Kong’s legal fraternity is mourning the loss of leading land law scholar Michael Wilkinson, who taught many of the city’s lawyers, including its first chief justice. He died on Wednesday evening at the age of 74.
The University of Hong Kong’s law faculty told students of his death in a circular late on Wednesday night. The school was in touch with the family regarding memorial service arrangements.
“I have probably taught 60 to 70 per cent of all lawyers in Hong Kong,” the veteran educator told legal publication Hong Kong Lawyer last year. “And the best part of my work is interacting with my students.”
After graduating from the University of Cambridge and becoming a barrister in Britain, Professor Wilkinson was offered a teaching position at the same institution, where he briefly taught Andrew Li Kwok-nang, who later become Hong Kong’s first chief justice.
In 1983, after spending 13 years teaching in Africa, Wilkinson joined HKU, where he taught law for more than three decades, making him the university’s longest-serving scholar.
He was a member of the Law Reform Commission from 2008 to 2014, and wrote much-cited practitioners’ guides to civil procedures and conveyancing. He served as HKU’s public orator from 2008 to last year, representing the university to deliver citations for recipients of honorary degrees.