Student Lounge Dedicated to Paul C. Tsai ’54 LLM, ’57 JSD

To honor the outstanding generosity of Joseph C. Tsai ’90 to Yale Law School as well as the memory of his father, Paul C. Tsai ’54 LLM, ’57 JSD, the student lounge in Sterling Law Building has been named the Paul C. Tsai Student Lounge. 

To mark the naming, a celebration was held during Alumni Weekend 2025 in the Courtyard. Interim Dean and Shibley Family Fund Professor of Law Yair Listokin ’05 kicked off the event by acknowledging the indelible impact that Tsai’s generosity has had on the Law School. 

“Joe epitomizes the Yale tradition of producing lawyers but also entrepreneurs, policy makers, and changemakers in any one of a number of different fields,” said Listokin. “He isn’t just emblematic of that, he’s institutionalized it here at the Law School with The Tsai Leadership Program, giving students institutional support and making them feel like they’re part of a community — and we thank him for that.” 

Tsai, who is the co-founder and chairman of the Alibaba Group and owner of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, has made gifts to the Law School in recent years that have significantly reshaped its academic offerings. In 2016, Tsai made a gift to the Law School’s China Center — now named the Paul Tsai China Center in honor of his father. In 2021, thanks to an additional gift, the Law School launched The Tsai Leadership Program to better equip students to be changemakers across various fields in both the public and private sectors. 

During the celebration during Alumni Weekend, Avi Gupta ’26 — a fellow in both the Ludwig Program in Public Sector Leadership and Chae Initiative in Private Sector Leadership as part of The Tsai Leadership Program — shared the impact that the Program has had on him throughout his time at the Law School and how it’s shaped his future career aspirations. The child of two immigrants, Gupta came to the Law School with a background in technology and uncertain of what he would do with his law degree. He was sure of two things: He wanted to make a significant impact on the world, and Yale Law School was the best place to enable him to do so. 

“The Tsai Leadership Program has made me confident that no matter what I ultimately pursue, I’ll be equipped with the vision, skills, and relationships to at least aspire to leadership in that field, and when I hopefully graduate from Yale Law School in May, I’ll be proud to join the growing group of Tsai Leadership Program alumni that will soon provide counsel to future generations of Yale Law students,” said Gupta. “So, thank you, first and foremost, to Joe Tsai, but also to the countless alumni who volunteered their time to support this remarkable program. It’s made a profound impact on my experience here at Yale, and I am confident that it will educate leaders here for years to come.”

In his remarks, Tsai explained his perspective on how a legal education lends itself to positions of leadership, and how this connection led to the creation of the Leadership Program. He also expressed gratitude for his father, who had a profound influence on his life and education. 

“My father taught me to have a very rich intellectual life,” said Tsai. “He is somebody who I really admire and who is really inspiring to me. I am who I am because of him. I would like to have people who come here, to Yale Law School, to have this intellectual experience, to also remember him.”

Sterling Professor Emeritus of Law Heather Gerken expressed her appreciation for Tsai and the critical role he played in bolstering the School’s commitment to innovative programming. 

“The Leadership Program is the guarantee that Yale Law School will always remain Yale Law School, and that we will have the support we need to adapt, innovate, and build the curriculum for the next century,” said Gerken. “Whatever happens to our peers, Yale Law School will always remain true to itself. That is as ambitious a goal as I can imagine, and we owe it all to you.”