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The Legal System
Hong Kong and the Mainland. The objective is to reduce the need for re-litigation and offer better protection to the parties' interests.
Capacity Building in Partnership with International Organisations
The department promotes Hong Kong as an international and regional capacity-building centre for international law and dispute resolution through organising conferences and training programmes on its own or with international and local bodies.
In April, the department supported the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) and its Asia Pacific Regional Office in hosting the conference, The HCCH 125 - Ways Forward: Challenges and Opportunities in an Increasingly Connected World, which celebrated the HCCH's 125th anniversary; in September, it co-organised with the UN Commission on International Trade Law and the Asian Academy of International Law the Hong Kong Forum: 60th Anniversary of New York Convention, and supported the academy in arranging the Hong Kong session for the China-AALCO (Asian-African Legal Consultative Organisation) Exchange and Research Programme on International Law. These events provided opportunities for capacity building and the establishment of a network of judicial and legal experts among the participating jurisdictions, which will facilitate cooperation for the Belt and Road economies and beyond.
In addition, the department takes an active role in the 'Friends of the Chair on Strengthening Economic and Legal Infrastructure, which was established under the Economic Committee of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and supported various capacity-building initiatives under APEC, including a work plan on online dispute resolution. For example, in March the department organised a Workshop on the Use of Modern Technology for Dispute. Resolution and Electronic Agreement Management (particularly Online Dispute Resolution) in Papua New Guinea. It also assisted Indonesia in conducting a national capacity-building workshop about online dispute resolution in July, and organised a policy discussion on online dispute resolution for APEC economies during the plenary meeting of the APEC Economic Committee in Papua New Guinea in August.
Grooming Talent
The department supports the grooming of legal talent by offering internships and placements to young legal professionals and by engaging less experienced barristers to undertake court work. A Joint Training Programme is organised with the two legal professional bodies biannually to train young lawyers to conduct prosecutions in the Magistrates' Courts.
Legal Hub
The government will provide space to law-related organisations in the West Wing of the former Central Government Offices (CGO) and the former French Mission Building, pursuant to the policy objective of consolidating Hong Kong's status as a leading centre for international legal and dispute resolution services in the Asia-Pacific region. Together with the department's offices in the former CGO, the whole area will form a Legal Hub in the heart of Hong Kong. Renovation works are in progress and space will be made available to the law-related organisations from around mid-2019.
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