Yvonne Tew

St Catharine's College

Renegotiating Human Rights Discourse: A Constitutional Adjudication Approach for Southeast Asia

Start Date: 2009/10.

End Date: 2012/07.

EDUCATION

 

University of Cambridge (St Catharine's College)                                                            

Doctoral Candidate 2009-2012

Honours:           Gates Cambridge Scholarship, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Tunku Abdul Rahman Ph.D. Scholarship, St Catharine's College

Thesis:              "Renegotiating Western and Asian Human Rights Discourse: A Contemporary Constitutional Adjudication Approach for Southeast Asia"; thesis focusing on constitutional law, human rights constitutional interpretation theory, and multiculturalism

Activities:          Editor-in-Chief of the Cambridge Student Law Review; President of the Cambridge University Southeast Asian Forum (CUSEAF); Blackstone Chambers De Smith Moot Competition judge

 

Harvard Law School                                                                                                                               

Master of Laws (LL.M.) 2008

Honours:           Cambridge-Harvard Benefited Place Award, Cambridge-Harvard Law Link; awarded to the top two performing students in the final year Tripos examination at the University of Cambridge admitted to the Harvard LL.M. program

Thesis:              “Freedom of Religion: ‘A Whim and Fancy’? The Lina Joy Case and a Model of Inclusiveness for Malaysia”; 110 page thesis; awarded distinction (grade A)

Activities:          Staff writer for the Harvard Law School newspaper, “The Record”

 

University of Cambridge (Fitzwilliam College)                                                                 

Bachelor of Arts in Law 

Honours:           Double First Class Honours; consistently placed in top 5% of class for all three years

      Awarded full undergraduate scholarship to the U.K. by the Government of Malaysia

      Awarded Senior Scholar, Johnson-Jary Prize, Reddaway Scholarship, Dr. William Edwards Scholarship, and Thatcher Prize by Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge for academic excellence for Parts IA, IB and II Tripos examinations

      Awarded Rebecca Flower Squire Scholarship by the Faculty of Law for outstanding performance in Part IA Tripos examinations

      Honorary Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust

Thesis:              “Forced Marriage: A Specific Criminal Offence?”; final year 50 page dissertation, first class honours

Activities:          Managing editor and founding member of Cambridge University’s first undergraduate international affairs magazine, “The Cambridge Globalist"; Cambridge University Negotiation Competition Champion; Brick Court Team Mooting Competition semi-finalist

 

Other                                                                                                                       

Cambridge International A Level Examinations

Honours:             Highest worldwide score for the Cambridge A Level Economics examination

Activities:            National inter-school debating champion; national law olympiad champion

 

WORK EXPERIENCE

 

University of Cambridge, Supervisor in Constitutional Law 

Pembroke College and Queen's College 2010-2012

St Catharine's College and Robinson College 2009-2010

Cambridge, United Kingdom; October 2009 – present

 

University of Cambridge, Research Assistant - Professor Christopher Forsyth, Professor of Public Law and Private International Law         

Cambridge, United Kingdom; March 2010 - present

 

United Nations, Permanent Mission from Malaysia to the UN, Intern                   

New York, United States; April 2009 – July 2009

 

University of Malaya, Tutor in Constitutional Law; Research Assistant - Datuk Rafiah Salim, Vice Chancellor of the University         

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Sept 2008 – April 2009

Attorney General’s Chambers of Malaysia, Intern                                                                                  

Putrajaya, Malaysia; summer 2006

 

Mini-pupillages

Essex Court Chambers; Fountain Court Chambers; Queen Elizabeth Building

London, United Kingdom; summer 2006

 

Vacation schemes

 Slaughter and May; Linklaters LLP; Shearman & Sterling LLP

London, United Kingdom; summer 2006

 

BAR MEMBERSHIP

Attorney and Counsellor at Law, New York    Admitted 2009

 

 

Constitutional law

Theories of human rights

International human rights

Civil liberties

Multiculturalism

 

Articles

"Constitutional Governance in Southeast Asia: The Constitution and the Courts", Thammasat Review (peer reviewed) (forthcoming) (2012)

"The Malaysian Legal System: A Tale of Two Courts", 19(1) Commonwealth Judicial Journal (June 2011) 3

 

Case Notes 

"And They Call It Puppy Love: Young Love, Forced Marriage, and Immigration Rules", Case Note on R (Quila) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (2011) 71(1) Cambridge Law Journal (March 2012) 18

"No Longer a Privileged Few: Expense Claims, Prosecution, and Parliamentary Privilege", Case Note on R v Chaytor, 70(2) Cambridge Law Journal (2011) 282-84

 

Book Reviews

Review of The Rule of Law by Tom Bingham, 70(2) Cambridge Law Journal (2011) 481-83

Review of The New British Constitution by Vernon Bogdanor, 69(2) Cambridge Law Journal (2010) 413-15

Review of Human Rights in Asia by Leena Avonius & Damien Kingsbury (eds), 6 Cambridge Student Law Review (2010) 343-45

 

Selected Presentations

Competitively Selected

"From 'Asian Values' to 'Bersih': Governance and Rights Protection in Malaysia", Law and Society in Malaysia: Islam, Pluralism and Development, Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, University of Victoria, Canada; July 14-17, 2011, paper presenter

"Constitutional Governance in Southeast Asia: Reassessing Human Rights Perspectives in Malaysia and Singapore", Governance, Human Rights & Development, Challenges for Southeast Asia and Beyond, International Conference on International Relations and Development 2011, Thammasat University, Bangkok, Thailand; 19-20 May 2011, paper presenter 

"Moving Beyond “Asian Values”: A New Model for Southeast Asia", Venice Academy of Human Rights,Inaugural Session, Venice; July 12-17, 2010, seminar presenter

 

Invited Presentations

"Beyond 'Asian Values': Reassessment of Western and Asian Perspectives on Human Rights", Centre of Governance and Human Rights, University of Cambridge; February 7, 2011, paper presenter

"The Malaysian Constitution: Amend, Repeal, or Let Remain?", UK & Eire Council for Malaysian Students, UKEC 8th Annual Conference, London, April 9, 2011, moderator

Research Assistance

C. F. Forsyth, “Judicial Review: The Handmaiden of Democracy”, Inner Temple Lecture, Nov 14, 2011 (research assistance to Professor Christopher Forsyth)

C. F. Forsyth, "The Definition of Parliament After Jackson: Can the Life of Parliament be Extended After the Parliament Acts?", 9(1) International Journal of Constitutional Law (2011) 132 (research assistance to Professor Christopher Forsyth)

C. F. Forsyth, "The Failure of Institutions: The South African Judicial Service Commission and the Hlophe Saga", book chapter in The Culture of Judicial Independence Conceptual Foundations and Practical Challenges, Shimon Shetreet and Christopher Forsyth (eds) (2011, Brill) (research assistance to Professor Christopher Forsyth)

R. Salim, Evidence in Malaysia and Singapore: Cases, Materials and Commentary, Rafiah Salim (Butterworths) (proposed 3rd ed) (principal research assistance in editing casebook to Datuk Rafiah Salim, Vice Chancellor, University Malaya) 

 

RELATED LINKS

Cambridge Student Law Review:  http://www.cslr.org

Cambridge University Southeast Asian Forum: http://cuseaf.wordpress.com/about/

 

 

Professor Christopher Forsyth, Professor of Public Law and Private International Law