The Deputy Secretary for Justice, Mr Cheung Kwok-kwan, called on the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) today (June 14) in Beijing to meet with Vice-Minister of Justice Mr Hu Weilie. They had in-depth discussions on the latest developments on the construction of rule of law in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) and related issues, nurturing foreign-related legal talent, developing Hong Kong as a centre for international legal and dispute resolution services in the Asia-Pacific region and more.

     Mr Cheung expressed his gratitude to the MoJ for its full and continuous support for Hong Kong's legal sector in better integrating into the overall national development, and for its tremendous efforts in taking forward the extension of the period of the pilot scheme for Hong Kong and Macao legal practitioners to practise in the nine Mainland municipalities in the GBA until 2026, as well as lowering the practice experience threshold to three years.

     He pointed out that the GBA Legal Professional Examination has been held three times. The latest examination is to be held by the end of this month. The Department of Justice (DoJ) will continue to work closely with the relevant Mainland authorities to provide practical legal training for GBA lawyers, and promote the establishment of a platform in Hong Kong for GBA lawyers, with a view to empowering the professional development of GBA lawyers more systematically to nurture more foreign-related legal talent with dual qualifications for the country. Meanwhile, the DoJ will spare no effort in promoting the establishment of a GBA Legal Information Platform to provide a reliable and comprehensive information platform for stakeholders, contributing to the construction of rule of law in the GBA. 

     In addition, Mr Cheung said that the DoJ is actively taking forward the establishment of the Hong Kong International Legal Talents Training Academy, with a view to leveraging the unique advantages of Hong Kong's common law system to contribute to the country's nurturing of foreign-related legal talent.

     He was grateful for the strong support of the MoJ, which attaches great importance to the DoJ's initiatives.

     Mr Cheung will return to Hong Kong this afternoon.

Ends/Friday, June 14, 2024
Issued at HKT 15:08

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