Daniel Tsai, chairman of Taiwan-based Fubon Group and ’79 LL.M. graduate of Georgetown University Law Center, has made a record $30 million gift to Georgetown Law. The gift — the largest ever capital gift in the history of the university — will support the construction, pending zoning approval, of a new 200,000 square foot state-of-the art academic building on the Georgetown Law campus and a new architectural landmark for Washington, D.C.’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.
Tsai, who spent a year at Georgetown Law studying international trade and negotiation LL.M., says his time at the Law Center was transformative, sharpening his skills as a business person and expanding his perspective as a global citizen.
“Going to Georgetown Law broadened my views about other cultures, which helped me greatly in my business career,” Tsai said. “The biggest thing I learned was to always stay open-minded and to observe and learn new things. I hope that this gift and the educational endeavors it will make possible will provide similar inspiration to Georgetown Law students for generations to come.”
Georgetown Law Dean William M. Treanor said the gift would not only re-shape the law campus landscape, it would also strengthen the student experience.
“His historic gift will now enable us to provide a world-class education in an even more inspirational setting,” Treanor said. “We are honored that Daniel has chosen to help us grow in our mission.”
Tsai’s $30 million gift follows a $600,000 gift he made to the Law Center in 2020 to create the D. Tsai Endowed Scholarship Fund, which so far has provided six full tuition scholarships for Master of Laws students. Tsai said he created the fund in order to share the gift his father gave him by encouraging him to leave home for the first time ever to study in the United States.
The new building will be designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the firm founded by legendary architect I.M. Pei, who famously designed the East Building of the National Gallery of Art and the pyramid entrance to the Louvre in Paris. The highly sustainable design will include green features, such as rooftop solar panels, stormwater capture systems and terrace gardens.
The new building construction project continues to undergo internal and external reviews with the DC Zoning Commission.
The new law building will feature a suite to house the Law Center’s highly regarded legal clinics, 16 new classroom spaces equipped with the latest technology and a 75-seat moot courtroom, where students will be able to make practice arguments in a realistic courtroom setting. It will include several different convening and outdoor spaces from which community members and guests will be able to see the U.S. Capitol building.
Classrooms in the new building are equipped with state-of-the-art technology and are designed to accommodate student collaboration.
