Dr Kimberly Tao obtained her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in English Studies and Media & Cultural Studies with First Class Honours and PhD in English Studies (law and language) from The University of Hong Kong. During her undergraduate studies, she had been honoured on the Dean’s List for two consecutive years.

Her PhD thesis concerns the construction of (trans) gender identities and interpretation of gendered terms in the context of law and society. In 2013/14, her thesis was awarded the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fellowship that recognised her academic research achievements and contribution to the Hong Kong society. During her doctoral studies, she has presented papers in both international and local conferences and published articles in international journals. Her research interests include law and language, gender studies, sociolinguistics and discourse analysis.

Before joining this institution, Dr Tao accumulated tertiary institution teaching experiences at The University of Hong Kong where she worked as a tutor for different undergraduate courses in English studies, including law and language, language theories and sociolinguistics.

Selected publications:

Tao, K.W.Y. (2012). "Definition in Law: Transgender Identities and Marriage" in World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, 6, 3403-3047.

Tao, K.W.Y. (2015). Exploring the sources of authority over the word meaning in transgender jurisprudence. in Marginalised Bodies (Re)Imagining the Law, Special Issue for International Journal for the Semiotics of Law, 1-16.