Tenured Associate Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University. He is also the Deputy Director of the Institute for Government Management and Innovation and Director of the Center for Law and Governance at the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University.
He is a recipient of the Excellent Eiffel Scholarship from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a Tsinghua University Zhongying Young Scholar, a member of the 16th Central Committee for the Rule of Law of the China Zhi Gong Party, and one of the fourth cohort of "Legal Research Scholars" at the Supreme People's Court. He serves as a council member for both the Administrative Law Research Association and the Cyber and Information Law Research Association of the China Law Society. Additionally, he is a member of the international academic network "Public Contracts in Legal Globalization."
His publications have appeared in journals such as China Quarterly, American Review of Public Administration, Revue française de droit administratif, as well as Chinese Journal of Law (法学研究), China Legal Science (中国法学), Peking University Law Journal (中外法学), and China Public Administration Review (公共管理评论). He has led projects including the National High-end Think Tank Project, key and youth projects of the National Social Science Fund of China, the Tsinghua University Leading Talent Special Project, and the Youth Talent Program of the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) Think Tank. His internal reports have been adopted and received endorsements at the national, provincial, and ministerial levels.
In terms of teaching, he was awarded the First Prize in the liberal arts category at Tsinghua University's 8th Young Teachers' Teaching Competition in 2019, and the First Prize in the social sciences and ideological and political theory category at the 11th Beijing Municipal Young Teachers' Basic Teaching Skills Competition. He also received the Tsinghua University Annual Teaching Excellence Award in 2019 and 2021. His academic work has been recognized with the 2nd Ying Songnian Award for Outstanding Achievements in Administrative Law, a nomination for the 8th Dong Biwu Youth Law Achievement Award, the Second Prize of the 2nd Fangde Rule of Law Research Award, the Best Paper Award at the 19th GMC International Conference, and the Best Paper Award at the 2nd ICCPS. He participated in the drafting of versions 2.0 and 3.0 of the "Artificial Intelligence Model Law," which was released globally in Chinese, English, French, and Spanish.
Education
· 2013-2017: PhD in Public Law, University of Bordeaux, France
· 2011-2012: Master's Degree (M2) in Public Law, University of Strasbourg, France
· 2009-2012: Master's Degree in Constitutional and Administrative Law, Southwest University of Political Science and Law, China
· 2005-2009: Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.), Southwest University of Political Science and Law, China
Courses Taught
· Public Law (MPA Program)
· Digital Governance: Law, Policy, and Practice (Undergraduate Course)
Research Interests
· Normative Legal Studies:
Administrative Law (Administrative Agreements), French Administrative Law, EU Law
· Socio-Legal Studies:
Rule of Law in Government, Rule of Law in Public Administration, Judicial Governance
· Digital Law Studies:
AI Legislation, Governance of AI Agents
Normative Legal Studies:
· CHEN Tianhao, « Les ‘gènes’ français du droit des contrats administratifs chinois et de son évolution », Revue française de droit administratif (RFDA) juillet-août 2016.
· Chen Tianhao, "The Integration and Improvement of the System for Modification and Termination of Administrative Agreements," China Legal Science, 2022(1).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Identification and Boundaries of Administrative Agreements," China Legal Science, 2019(1).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Principle of Equality in Administrative Agreements," Peking University Law Journal, 2019(1).
· Chen Tianhao, "Between Public Service and Market Competition: The Origin and Evolution of the French Administrative Contract System," Peking University Law Journal, 2015(6).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Construction of a Legality Review Mechanism for Administrative Agreements," Legal Science, 2020(12).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Codification of French Administrative Law: Origins, Explorations, and Lessons," Journal of Comparative Law, 2021(5).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Structure and Improvement of the Litigation System for Administrative Agreements: An Approach from the Debate between the 'Act Theory' and the 'Relationship Theory'," Administrative Law Review, 2020(5). Republished in full in Reprinted Materials from Renmin University of China: Procedural Law and Judicial System, 2021(1).
· Chen Tianhao, "University Governance in France: Between 'University Autonomy' and 'Faculty Autonomy'," Tsinghua Journal of Education, 2019(2).
· Chen Tianhao, "The Dispute Resolution Mechanism for PPPs in France: Between the Legality and Stability of Agreements," China Law Review, 2018(4).
· Chen Tianhao, "Justice, Efficiency, and Traditional Concepts: The Path of Reform for French Administrative Litigation in the 21st Century," Tsinghua Law Journal, 2013(7).
· Chen Tianhao, "Ancillary Obligations in Administrative Agreements," Zhejiang Academic Journal, 2022(3).
· [Translation] Chen Tianhao, The French Code of Administrative Justice (120,000 words), in A Compilation of Chinese and Foreign Administrative Procedure Laws, edited by Professor He Haibo, The Commercial Press, 2018.
· [Textbook Chapters] Chen Tianhao, "Beneficial Administrative Acts," "Burdensome Administrative Acts," and "Other Acts of Administrative Organs," in Administrative Law, edited by Professor Zhan Zhongle, Peking University Press, 2023.
Socio-Legal Studies:
· CHEN Tianhao, XU Wei, YU Xiaohong*. "Administrative Litigation in China: Assessing the Chief Officials Appearance System," China Quarterly, 2024: 744-764.
· CHEN Tianhao, SHENG Yu, XU Wei, YU Xiaohong*. "Judicializing Public Interests: Administrative Performance Under the Shadow of Judicial Review," American Review of Public Administration, 2024(7): 630-647.
· Chen Tianhao & Su Yipo, "The Governance Effectiveness and Institutional Logic of China's Intellectual Property Courts," Chinese Journal of Law, 2023(1).
· Chen Tianhao, Shao Jianshu & Wang Xuechun, "An Empirical Test and Path to Improvement for the Procuratorial Administrative Public Interest Litigation System," Peking University Law Journal, 2020(5).
· Chen Tianhao, Xu Wei & Sheng Yu*, "How Can a Proactive Government Accept Judicial Supervision? A Research Framework, Chinese Practice, and Future Prospects," China Public Administration Review, 2024(2).
Digital Law Studies:
· CHEN Tianhao, XU Wei, ZHAO Jing*. "The Court as a Policy Information Discoverer: Evidence from China’s Emerging Industries," China Law and Society Review, 2024, 9(1): 1-24.
· Chen Tianhao & Liu Yuchen, "How to Govern Autonomous Driving? Functional Realization, Ethical Challenges, and Governance Systems of Autonomous Driving," Zhejiang Academic Journal, 2025(4).
· Chen Tianhao & Xu Wei, "Regulating Agile Supervision: Regulatory Challenges and Improvement Paths for Open Finance Data," Governance Studies, 2023(6).
· ZHOU, Hui, Yue ZHU, Lingfeng ZHU, Yu SU, Zhiwei YAO, Jun WANG, Tianhao CHEN, et al. "The model artificial intelligence law (MAIL) v.2.0 - multilingual version." Zenodo, April 16, 2024. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10974163
· ZHOU, Hui, Yanlin CAO, Tianhao CHEN, Xingsi DI, Zixuan FENG, Hongyu FU, Bo HE, et al. "The Model Artificial Intelligence Law (MAIL) V.3.0 - Multilingual Version." Zenodo, June 28, 2025. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15761453.
Academic Commentary & Media Engagement
· June 27, 2025: Interviewed by Xinhua News Agency for the article "Xinhua Viewpoint | What Changes Will the Newly Revised Public Security Administration Punishments Law Bring to Our Lives?" Discussed the specific responses of the new law to security risks posed by cyberspace and emerging technologies.
· June 28, 2024: Interviewed by Xinhua News Agency for the article "Xinhua Viewpoint | Four Key Points in the Second Draft of the Revised Public Security Administration Punishments Law." Discussed the new provisions on the connection between administrative and criminal penalties.
· December 25, 2023: Interviewed by Xinhua News Agency for the article "Xinhua Viewpoint | Four Key Points in the 2023 Crackdown on Telecom and Online Fraud." Discussed successful collaborative governance practices in the campaign.
· November 11, 2023: Interviewed by Legal Daily for the article "Scientific and Technological Activities Should Adhere to Moral and Ethical Principles." Interpreted the Measures for the Ethical Review of Science and Technology (Trial), jointly issued by 10 government departments.
· June 2023: Interviewed by Caixin Weekly for the cover story "Caixin Weekly | Establishing Rules for Sci-Tech Ethics Review." Discussed improving the implementation framework for sci-tech ethics review based on responsible innovation.
· December 2023: "Constructing a Public Service-Oriented System of Administrative Law," published in Chinese Social Sciences Today.
· November 2023: "How Should Government and Social Capital Cooperate?" published in China Government Procurement News.
· October 2023: "Providing a New Institutional Platform for the Interplay Between Suppliers and Regulators," published in China Bidding.
· September 2023: "The Scenery and Hidden Worries of a Digital Utopia," published in Legal Weekly.
