HK Lawyers Enjoy More Advantages if Allowed to Practice on Mainland: Official

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, March 26, 2002

HK Lawyers Enjoy More Advantages if Allowed to Practice on Mainland: Official

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A high-ranking Hong Kong official said here Tuesday that Hong Kong's legal professionals would enjoy more advantages over their foreign counterparts if allowed to practice on the mainland following China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Elsie Leung, secretary for justice of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), made the remarks in her speech entitled "A Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement? (CEPA)" delivered at a conference held at the University of Hong Kong.

After joining the WTO, China will certainly witness even more rapid growth both in terms of trade volume and economic restructuring, and meanwhile, its legal system would be more sophisticated and transparent, she said.

Exploring possible arrangements in respect of legal services under the proposed CEPA between the mainland and the HKSAR, Leung said that one option would be to seek arrangements that would giveHong Kong lawyers the same rights in respect of practice in the mainland as mainland lawyers enjoy in Hong Kong.

This means that Hong Kong lawyers could sit the National Lawyers Examination and qualify to practice as mainland lawyers, Leung explained.

Moreover, under such arrangements, Hong Kong law firms could enter into associations in the mainland with mainland lawyers, andHong Kong lawyers could also be employed by mainland law firms, Leung said.

Leung believed that such arrangements would be welcomed by HongKong's legal bodies, since it would give Hong Kong lawyers a tremendous advantage over lawyers in foreign jurisdictions.

Since China has not made any commitment to open up legal services relating to the practice of mainland law, it would not have any obligation to provide or phase in similar opportunities for foreign lawyers, she said.

Leung also noted that such arrangements would be beneficial to the development of the mainland's legal services, since a closer association in the mainland of Hong Kong and mainland lawyers willhelp develop legal services on the mainland.

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