It was established by Peking University Law School scholars Xu Zhiyong, Teng Biao, Yu Jiang, and Zhang Xingshui in 2003, and was shut down by the Chinese government in 2009.
Xu Zhiyong, Teng Biao, and another doctoral student from Peking University raised the unconstitutionality of the investigation in the Sun Zhigang case; initiated a grassroots local people’s congress primary election procedure.
Participated in the drafting of a proposed amendment to include “human rights” in the Constitution, submitted to the National People's Congress; followed the Henan incident where authorities forcibly closed the HIV/AIDS orphanage known as “Home of Care and Love”; defended Yu Huafeng and Cheng Yizhong, the General Manager and Editor in Chief, respectively, of the Southern Metropolitan Daily; participated in representing the four innocent Chengde citizens who were sentenced, five times, to the death penalty; organized a symposium to discuss the legitimacy of the relocation of the Beijing Zoo.
[3] The crackdown came during a time of heightened political tension regarding the Taiwan Straits and the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, and also during events symbolic of China's increasing international interdependence, such as the visit of the Greek Olympian envoy.
Organized a Pro Bono Legal Aid Team to conduct public interest litigation on behalf of victims of the tainted milk scandal; promoted direct elections within the Beijing Lawyers Association.