University of Otago alumna and former Faculty of Law member Dr Mai Chen said it became abundantly clear near the end of her degree that her thoughts on law did not fit in with those prevailing in the profession.
"I have not always seen the law in the same way as other people — I came from a very different background.
"I tried to leave law school.
"After my first year of honours, I went to see my supervisor and said, ‘look, I don’t fit in the law; I don’t come from mummy or daddy’s firm’.
"I remember telling a professor that the law shouldn’t be that way in terms of policy and principles, and he used to say, ‘look lady, I just teach you what the law is, not what it should be’.
"I’ve always not quite fitted, but it turns out that being different is not necessarily a weakness — it can actually be a strength.
"I want to encourage other lawyers not to be afraid to think outside the box.
"To look at the law from a different perspective."
So she has established a new award for University of Otago law students.
The Mai Chen Legal Innovation Award will be granted annually to the student who produces the most innovative piece of legal writing for an LLM or LLB (Hons) dissertation, or a research and writing assignment for an LLB/LLB (Hons) degree.
Dr Chen’s gift is for an annual award of $5000, each year for 10 years.
The original piece of writing is one which, in a meaningful way, challenges or expands the boundaries of established understanding and thinking about the law.
She said the award was designed to incentivise that sort of thinking.
"If you have different view-points, you can think about whether that different viewpoint might be helpful in developing and evolving the law so that it remains fit for purpose.
"Common law is not going to develop and evolve in a way that ensures that it will remain fit for purpose, if we don’t have people prepared to do that sort of thinking.
"Increasingly in this fast-changing world that we live in, Common Law is often confronted with gaps, simply because new situations are arising that have not been dealt with before.
"Including from artificial intelligence, the increasing numbers of indigenous and super diverse peoples in New Zealand, climate change and global pandemics.
"How does the law develop to deal with those situations in an effective way?
"This award encourages thinking to keep our law match-fit to meet new scenarios and to re-appraise existing scenarios where appropriate, in the light of more facts coming to light."
The award will be given for the first time later this year, and the inaugural selection panel will consist of three senior Otago alumni, Supreme Court Justice Forrest Miller and Court of Appeal Justices Christine French and Sarah Katz.
It is also hoped the winning entry will be published.
