Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 Concludes with Successful Lawyers Forum and LawTech Conference

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes

The first Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) Lawyers Forum and the LawTech Conference were successfully held today (December 5), marking the conclusion of Hong Kong Legal Week 2025, an annual event of the Department of Justice (DoJ). The five-day event attracted approximately 6 000 registrants from nearly 50 jurisdictions, participating both online and offline. This fully demonstrated Hong Kong's leading position as an international legal and dispute resolution services centre in the Asia-Pacific region with the unique advantages of the common law system under the "one country, two systems" principle.

The first Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Lawyers Forum, themed "GBA Connectivity: Setting Sail for Global Horizons", was held in the morning, with prominent legal experts from Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland sharing their insights on cross-boundary collaboration and future development for GBA lawyers.

In the afternoon, the highlight of the Hong Kong LawTech Fest - LawTech Conference "The AI Era: Shaping the Legal Landscape in the 21st Century" - was held. The conference featured multiple sessions, including a keynote speech, an interactive "LawTech Guess Who" segment, and the "LexGoTech Roundtable Series - 2025 Final Round", which deepened the industry's understanding of the opportunities and challenges presented by lawtech and artificial intelligence.

Addressing the conference, the Deputy Secretary for Justice, Dr Cheung Kwok-kwan, said that the DoJ is steadfast in its commitment to foster innovation and the integration of technology in the legal industry. To this end, it has established the Consultation Group on Lawtech Development, and organised the LexGoTech Roundtable Series and the inaugural LawTech Fest. He said that while lawtech and AI enhance the efficiency of legal services, they cannot replace the indispensable human elements of legal professionals, such as empathy, judgment, and integrity. Only with an open and responsible mindset will the legal sector be able to grasp the opportunities brought by lawtech and AI and transform the challenges into benefits.

The LexGoTech Roundtables Report was released during the Roundtable Series, which summarises the insights shared by the legal and dispute resolution sectors on lawtech at the first three rounds of LexGoTech Roundtables held this year. The report emphasised the sectors' recognition of the potential of lawtech in transforming legal services, the importance of incorporating ethical considerations into the application of lawtech, and their support for the responsible application and development of lawtech in the long run.

In his closing remarks, the Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam, SC, said that the Policy Address this year emphasised the Government's strong commitment to step up the promotion of AI as a core industry for Hong Kong's development. In this connection, apart from actively promoting the integration of lawtech and AI in the legal sector, the DoJ will establish an interdepartmental working group by the end of this year to co-ordinate the responsible bureaux in reviewing the relevant legislation, so as to support and complement the development of and need for wider application of AI in Hong Kong.

The DoJ will continue to organise various activities to facilitate exchanges among experts, practitioners, government officials, and academics from Hong Kong, the Chinese Mainland and different jurisdictions, with an aim of promoting Hong Kong's legal and dispute resolution services and consolidating its leading position as an international legal and dispute resolution services centre in the Asia-Pacific.

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Hong Kong Legal Week 2025 concludes Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Two property owners fined over $400,000 in total for not complying with removal orders

Two owners were convicted and fined $401,600 in total at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts yesterday (March 11) for failing to comply with removal orders issued under the Buildings Ordinance (BO) (Cap. 123).

The Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts, the Kowloon City Law Courts Building

The two cases involved four unauthorised structures with a total area of about 1 140 square metres on the roof of an industrial building on Sze Mei Street, Wong Tai Sin. As the unauthorised building works (UBWs) were carried out without prior approval and consent from the Buildings Department (BD), removal orders were served on the two owners respectively under section 24(1) of the BO.

The Buildings Department (BD), Photo source: reference image

Failure to comply with the removal orders, the two owners were prosecuted by the BD four times and were fined a cumulative total of $417,845 and $432,545 respectively upon convictions by the court. As they persisted in not complying with the removal orders, they were prosecuted for the fifth time and each was fined $200,800, of which $70,800 was the fine for the number of days that the offence continued, upon convictions at the court.

A spokesman for the BD said today (March 12), "UBWs may lead to serious consequences. Owners must comply with removal orders without delay. The BD will continue to take enforcement action against owners who fail to comply with removal orders, including instigation of prosecution, to ensure building and public safety."

Failure to comply with a removal order without reasonable excuse is a serious offence under the BO. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $200,000 and one year's imprisonment, and a further fine of up to $20,000 for each day that the offence continues.