Dr Xue (Sophia) Bai is an Associate Lecturer in the School of Law at Western Sydney University. Before joining WSU, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the China International Business & Economic Law (CIBEL) Centre, Faculty of Law & Justice, University of New South Wales. Dr Bai was awarded her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Law by UNSW in 2021.

Dr Bai’s research examines government restraints on competition, with a particular focus on the role and regulation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) within competition law and policy frameworks. Her broader research interests span the intersection between sustainability and competition law, digital market competition issues, competitive neutrality policy, and competition impact assessment. She has published widely in these areas, including the recent article ‘Competitive Neutrality: OECD Recommendations and the Australian Experience’ (2023) 19(2) Journal of Competition Law & Economics, co-authored with Rhonda L Smith and Deborah Healey.

Dr Bai received the 2022 Concurrences best PhD Award in Law for her doctoral thesis, ‘Reform of Chinese State-Owned Enterprises: What China Can Learn from the Practice of Competitive Neutrality Policy in Australia’. Her monograph based on this thesis was published in June 2023.