Professor Chen is currently Associate Professor of History and Global Asia Studies at the Department of Historical and Cultural Studies (UTSC), Graduate Department of History, and Faculty of Law (Cross-Appointed) at the University of Toronto.

His research and teaching interests include late Imperial and modern China (15th-20th centuries), Chinese law and society, Sino-Western relations, international law and history, and empire and postcolonial studies. He presented his research at various institutions, including Harvard University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, Duke University, University of Hong Kong, Peking University, Tsinghua University, College de France, and University of Helsinki, National University of Seoul.