MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale
MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale
MacMillan Center

Jiaying Zhao

Fox International Fellow
Fox International Fellowship, MacMillan Center
Academic Year: 2026-27
Direction: To Yale
Exchange Partner: Fudan University, China
Project Title: The Practice and Perception of Chinese Private Law and Custom within the British Lawyers in Modern China
Jiaying Zhao is a Ph.D. candidate in legal history at Fudan University Law School. She holds an LL.M. in legal history from Fudan University and an LL.B. from Sichuan University.
 
Her research interests span modern legal history, comparative law, and intellectual history. Her current research examines how British legal professionals exercised extraterritorial jurisdiction in adjudicating Sino-British civil cases, and how they perceived Chinese civil law and custom in the process. 
 
Jiaying began exploring her research interests during her master's studies. Her master's thesis focused on the state-building thought of Chinese intellectuals in the Late Qing. During her PhD period, Jiaying has investigated a range of topics, including the political participation of Chinese elites in the Ming and Qing Dynasties and British moral governance over Chinese cruelty to animals in the Shanghai International Settlement. 
 
Beyond her research, Jiaying also actively participates in academic workshops and organizes interdisciplinary reading groups, through which she engages with perspectives from different disciplines.