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

Companies Registry releases statistics for 2025

According to the statistics released by the Companies Registry today (January 16), a total of 195,343 local companies and re-domiciled companies were newly registered in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of local companies and re-domiciled companies registered under the Companies Ordinance increased by 96,609 compared to 2024, reaching 1,557,103, which was an all-time high figure.

In 2025, 1,532 non-Hong Kong companies that had newly established a place of business in Hong Kong were registered under the Companies Ordinance. By the end of 2025, the total number of registered non-Hong Kong companies was 15,586, up 3 per cent compared to 2024.

The company re-domiciliation regime, implemented since May 23, 2025, has received a positive market response. By the end of 2025, the Registry had received over 420 enquiries and 30 applications. Among these, six non-Hong Kong corporations incorporated in Luxembourg, the Cayman Islands or Bermuda, including an insurance company, have been successfully re-domiciled to Hong Kong. The regime provides a simple and cost-effective pathway for non-Hong Kong incorporated companies to re-domicile to Hong Kong by eliminating the need for complicated and costly judicial procedures while preserving a company's legal identity. It ensures seamless business continuity and strengthens the competitiveness of Hong Kong as a global business and financial hub.

In 2025, the number of charges on properties of companies received for registration was 12,912, which was 6.4 per cent up from 12,137 in 2024. The number of notifications of payments and releases received for registration increased by 14.2 per cent, from 18,201 in 2024 to 20,789 in 2025.

In 2025, a total of 180 prospectuses were registered while the figure recorded in 2024 was 157.

In 2025, the total number of documents delivered for registration increased by 7 per cent to 3,360,723, compared to 3,139,906 in 2024.

In 2025, a total of 5,229,202 searches of document image records were conducted using the Registry's electronic search services, an increase of 0.7 per cent from 5,194,865 in 2024.

On the registration of limited partnership funds (LPFs), a total of 389 LPFs were newly registered in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of LPFs increased by 35.1 per cent compared to the end of 2024, to 1,347.

For open-ended fund companies (OFCs), 210 OFCs were newly incorporated in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of OFCs increased by 43.2 per cent compared to the end of 2024, to 676.

As regards the licensing of trust or company service providers under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, a total of 760 new licences were granted by the Registry in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of licensees was 7,220.

Turning to the licensing of money lenders, 155 new licences were granted by the Licensing Court in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of licensed money lenders was 2,015.

For details of the statistics, please visit the "Statistics" section of the Registry's website (www.cr.gov.hk).

Source: AI-found images