Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said on Saturday the government would be offering assistance to lawyers who have obtained a licence to practise in a number of cities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) to make inroads into these newly accessible metropolitan areas.

This came the National People's Congress Standing Committee's August passage of amendments to the Lawyers Law, which turned an initial pilot program into a permanent arrangement starting this month. The new law allows lawyers from Hong Kong and Macao to practice in stipulated legal areas across nine GBA municipalities.

So far, more than 650 lawyers have obtained the licence.

Speaking on a television programme, Lam said based on his understanding, a majority of these 650 are from Hong Kong and that a significant number of them have already started practising across the border.

When asked how the city can help small-and-medium law firms and young professionals tap these new markets, Lam said work is under way.

“We really hope to be able to do more work to help both sides to find partners," he said.

"They have this qualification, but for them to really get off the ground in these nine GBA municipalities, they need to have partnerships with local lawyers.

"For them to be able to find a partner will require matchmakers.”

On top of the GBA Lawyers Organization that was set up last year, Lam said, the government also holds activities from time to time to enable licence holders to carry out direct exchanges with their peers on the mainland.

In the runup to a recent visit to Central Asia, Lam said he and his delegation went to Xinjiang first and brought along two lawyers from the region.

Many Xinjiang professionals have set up business connections with Central Asia as a result of the geographical proximity of the two regions.

With the teams from the SAR and Xinjiang, Lam said, the nation can better showcase its professional capabilities as well as help mainland firms to expand their market to Central Asia.




Edited by Azam Khan