DoJ Publishes First Panel List of Hong Kong Legal Services Providers Supporting "Go Global" to Facilitate Precise Connections between Mainland Enterprises and Hong Kong's Legal Services Sector

DoJ publishes first Panel List of Hong Kong Legal Services Providers Supporting "Go Global" to facilitate precise connections between Mainland enterprises and Hong Kong's legal services sector

The Department of Justice (DoJ) today (April 14) published, for the first time, the Panel List of Hong Kong Legal Services Providers Supporting "Go Global", comprising over 70 legal services providers in Hong Kong to facilitate precise connections of Mainland enterprises with Hong Kong's legal professional services based on their specific needs for expanding overseas, and to encourage the use by Mainland enterprises of Hong Kong as their preferred springboard of going global. The Panel List has been uploaded to the DoJ website.

The Panel List covers international arbitration institutions, practising barristers and 60 local, international and registered foreign law firms of various sizes. All service providers on the Panel List have track records in the relevant professional fields of going global.

To facilitate precise connections with Mainland enterprises, the Panel List classifies legal services providers into 12 categories according to their practice areas: corporate structure and strategic governance; compliance and regulatory affairs; capital markets; banking and finance; taxation; intellectual property; data protection and cybersecurity; asset management and wealth succession; employment and cross-border human resources affairs; dispute resolution; real estate, infrastructure and energy; and industry-specific legal services. The service providers on the Panel List are also invited to submit their particulars to the GoGlobal Cross-sectoral Professional Services Platform established by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council to allow enterprises to consult on relevant information through the website and proceed with business matching.

The Deputy Secretary for Justice, Dr Cheung Kwok-kwan, said that the National 15th Five-Year Plan gives explicit support to Hong Kong in leveraging its professional strengths to assist enterprises in their going global endeavours. The release of the Panel List at the outset of the 15th Five-Year Plan is a timely and practical response. By capitalising on Hong Kong's strengths as an international legal hub, it supports Mainland enterprises in improving risk management as they go global, enhancing their international competitiveness and making steady and sustainable progress in international markets.

Dr Cheung said, "The Panel List fully reflects the breadth of Hong Kong's legal professional services. Hong Kong's legal sector has strong professional capabilities to respond to different 'going global' models, stages of development, and industry demands for high-quality legal services, providing enterprises with comprehensive professional support across the full business cycle. In addition, the Panel List also highlights the depth of Hong Kong's legal professional services by showcasing the specialised practice areas of each legal service provider. The Panel List is different from a simple directory. Apart from listing service providers' names and contact information, it also sets out, with reference to their track records or case submissions to the DoJ, the service providers' business and professional strengths. This will help the Hong Kong Professional Services GoGlobal Platform play the role of a 'golden matchmaker'."

The Chief Executive in his 2025 Policy Address tasked the Deputy Secretary for Justice to promote Hong Kong's professional services in areas such as law, finance and accounting, to comprehensively support Mainland enterprises wishing to expand overseas. The Hong Kong Professional Services GoGlobal Platform established under the steer of Dr Cheung last year primarily supports Mainland enterprises in two ways: first, consolidating information on professional services in Hong Kong to facilitate precise connections; and second, helping the sector understand enterprises' specific needs for professional services when going global to co-ordinate Hong Kong's professional services sectors towards providing effective support to enterprises.

Dr Cheung further said that the inaugural edition of the "Collection of Success Stories: Hong Kong’s Professional Services Supporting Chinese Mainland Enterprises Going Global"(bilingual in Chinese and English) released by the DoJ last year has received a positive response from stakeholders of different sectors. The DoJ is currently preparing to release a second edition. Meanwhile, it will invite representatives from the professional services sector and enterprises going global to share their successful experiences and produce short videos, providing practical references for Mainland enterprises which are interested in learning more about Hong Kong's legal and other professional services.

He expressed the hope that through the practical cases shared by both the professional services sectors and enterprises, the good story of "Go Global, Choose Hong Kong" will be told to continue promoting to enterprises and stakeholders on the Chinese Mainland and in other regions Hong Kong's unique role as a world-class springboard, as well as the advantages of Hong Kong's legal and other professional services.

Panel List of Hong Kong Legal Services Providers Supporting "Go Global", Photo source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Applications invited for flag days in 2027-28

Charitable organisations wishing to hold flag days between April 2027 and March 2028 are invited to apply to the Social Welfare Department (SWD) from today (April 15) to May 14.

To enable more organisations to solicit donations through flag sales, 27 flag days in 2027-28 will be assigned as regional flag days so that three organisations can sell flags concurrently on those days, one each on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon and in the New Territories. There will be 28 territory-wide flag days to be held in the year.

An SWD spokesman said today that applicant organisations must be bona fide non-profit-making organisations exempt from tax under Section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap. 112) and, after the recognition of tax exemption, have organised charitable activities in each of the past three years. Applicant organisations should refer to the eligibility criteria as detailed in the Explanatory Notes for Application for Flag Days in 2027-28.

"Flag day applications will be considered by the Lotteries Fund Advisory Committee according to factors including the organisation's integrity and management capability; the nature, value and standard of its existing services; its financial need; and its ability to organise a flag day, etc", the spokesman said.

The application form and the Explanatory Notes for Application for Flag Days in 2027-28 can be downloaded from the SWD’s website at www.swd.gov.hk/en/ngo/controlofc/flagdays/index.html or obtained from the Lotteries Fund Projects Section of the SWD at Rooms 3601-02, 36/F, Dah Sing Financial Centre, 248 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, from today to 6pm on May 14. Applications for flag days in 2027-28 can also be submitted online. Please refer to the SWD's website for application details.

The completed application form together with the required documents should reach the department at the above address by 6pm on May 14. Late applications will not be considered.

"Applicant organisations will be informed of the result around October this year," the spokesman added.

Enquiries can be made by telephone to 2832 4318 or 28324301; by fax to 2838 0441; or by email to flagday@swd.gov.hk.

Source: AI-found images