Hong Kong to promote strengths in dispute resolution services at Southeast Asia roadshows
Justice secretary Paul Lam to lead another delegation to Brunei, Vietnam and Malaysia to promote the city’s ‘unique advantages’
Paul Lam Ting-kwok, Hong Kong’s Secretary of Justice, will lead a delegation of legal professionals to visit Brunei, Vietnam and Malaysia later this month to promote the city’s legal and dispute-resolution services.
The visit aims to promote the city’s role as an intermediary between mainland China and countries in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, following heightened geopolitical tensions with the West. Lam earlier led a 30-person team in May to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
“It is my job to enhance and better the understanding among our friends in the Belt and Road regions of legal and dispute resolution services that Hong Kong can provide,” he said at a summit on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on Wednesday. The city has “unique advantages” in protecting the interests of parties involved in cross-border investment deals, he added.
The BRI is China’s global infrastructure cooperation strategy involving some 150 nations. Hong Kong has the only common-law jurisdiction within China and its legal system and dispute resolution services and infrastructure are well-established, Lam said.
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He also touted Hong Kong’s strong environmental, social and governance disclosures, investment management regulations and rule of law. Multiple cross-border arrangements with mainland China on legal enforcement and arbitration proceedings also enhance the city’s competitiveness, he said.
