This article describes in detail the Liu Yanwen v. Degree Evaluation Committee of Beijing University case. The plaintiff Liu Yanwen sued the Degree Evaluation Committee of Beijing University for its disapproval of his doctoral degree. In 1996, although his doctoral thesis titled "An Ultra-Short Laser Pulse Driven High Current Density Photoelectric Cathode" was unanimously approved by the thesis committee and by the degree evaluation committee, it was rejected by the school degree committee. According to school regulations, a certificate of completion is issued if the thesis fails to pass its defense committee. Liu Yanwen talked to various people after his thesis was rejected in order to understand these issues and he found out that his thesis was not the cause of the problem but the people involved in the decision-making process. Liu Yanwen filed a lawsuit in 1997. After the court proceedings, the court has deemed that the defendant Beijing University's decision to deny Liu Yanwen of a doctoral degree was illegal. [Translated by Huiping Iler.]