The William S. Richardson School of Law established the Institute of Asian-Pacific Business Law (IAPBL) in June 2006 to become the premier academic center for research and training in the rapidly growing field of business law in Asia and the Pacific. The Institute focuses on areas of great importance to Asia and Hawai‘i, including commercial law, insolvency and secured transactions, corporate law and business transactions, securities, intellectual property, real estate financing, and labor law issues. The Institute’s activities facilitate direct exchanges between the academic, legal, and business communities in Hawai‘i and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
Activities
The Institute for Asian Pacific Business Law:
- Hosts symposia, colloquia, and talks where IAPBL Fellows and subject matter experts from around the world gather to address significant legal issues of relevance to Hawaiʻi and/or the Asian-Pacific region and leads the publication of books and journal articles considering these issues.
- Highlights the expertise of the William S. Richardson School of Law in the area of Asian-Pacific law.
- Assists the William S. Richardson School of Law in strengthening ties with other academic institutions in the Asian-Pacific region, as well as facilitating collaboration between individual faculty members at the Law School with their counterparts in the Asian-Pacific region.
- Serves as a forum for Hawaiʻi’s lawyers and accountants, businessmen, academics, judges, and policy-makers to learn about Asian-Pacific business law issues and to interact with their counterparts throughout the region.
- Provides technical trainings for lawyers and judiciaries across the Asian-Pacific region on cross-border insolvency, insolvency legislation, judicial operations, and comparative law.
- Supports the on-going teaching activities within the PALS and LLM programs.
- Helps the School of Law attract exceptional J.D. and LLM students interested in this area of study by raising the profile of the William S. Richardson School of Law in Asian-Pacific law.
Leadership
Director Charles D. Booth
Professor Booth is the Michael J. Marks Distinguished Professor of Business Law Professor of Law and Carlsmith Ball Faculty Scholar (2012-2014) at the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. He is a Fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy, a Founding Member of the International Insolvency Institute (III), and a member of the International Academy of Commercial and Consumer Law. Professor Booth is very active in law reform. He has served as a consultant on insolvency and commercial law reform projects sponsored by the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the EBRD, the OECD, the International Republican Institute, the ABA-UN Development Programme International Legal Resources Center, the Asian Business Law Institute (ABLI), and the III. He is also the Co-Designer and Co-Director of the Professional Diploma in Insolvency Course organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Professor Booth is a leading expert on comparative and cross-border insolvency and commercial law and is especially well known for his work on Asian law. His current research examines Hong Kong and Chinese insolvency law and reform, and the development of insolvency and commercial law infrastructures in Asia in the aftermath of the Asian Financial Crisis. He publishes extensively on these topics and has authored or co-authored more than 70 publications, which have been published in ten jurisdictions.
Deputy Director Garrett I. Halydier
Professor Halydier is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor and Interim Director of Bar Success at the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. He graduated from Richardson in 2015, where he served as Co-EIC of the Asian-Pacific Law and Policy Journal and regional champion member of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Team. After graduation, he clerked at the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals, operated his own law firm, and provided business consulting and lobbying services to cannabis industry participants across the country.
Professor Halydier writes and teaches in the fields of law and economics, secured transactions and real property, academic success, and cannabis law. His research to date focuses on the regulatory conditions necessary to effectively create and nurture nascent, domestic pharmaceutical industries.
Oversight
A Management Board of Richardson professors oversees IABPL’s activities and programs and an Advisory Board comprised of prominent academics and members of the legal and business communities provide guidance and assist in increasing the visibility of IAPBL in Hawai‘i and overseas.
Donation
If you are interested in supporting the work of IAPBL, please donate at this link.
