Legal services

WTO commitments or existing regulations on examination and approval

According to Regulations on Management of Representative Offices of Law Offices of Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions in the Mainland: 1.The law offices of Hong Kong and Macao have been in legal practice; 2.The representatives of the representative office shall be members of the lawyer’s association and have practiced in regions other than the Mainland for more tian 2 years. The chief representative shall have practiced for more than 3 years; 3. The business scope covers providing legal consultation for Hong Kong and Macao or regions outside China, accepting entrustment and handling legal business in the region where they have been approved to practice and handling the legal businesses of the Mainland that the clients in Hong Kong and Macao entrust the law offices in the Mainland with.

Commitments under CEPA

1. Hong Kong law firms (offices ) that have set up representative offices in the Mainland are allowed to operate in association with Mainland law firms, except in the form of partnership. Hong Kong lawyers participating in such association cannot handle matters of Mainland law. 2. Mainland law firms are allowed to employ Hong Kong legal practitioners. Such practitioners who are employed by Mainland law firms must not handle matters of Mainland law. 3. The 15 Hong Kong lawyers who nave acquired Mainland lawyer qualifications are allowed to intern and practise on non-litigation legal work in the Mainland. 4. Hong Kong permanent residents with Chinese citizenship are allowed to sit the legal qualifying examination in the Mainland and acquire Mainland legal professional qualification in accordance with the “ State Judicial Examination Implementation Measures ”. Those who have acquired Mainland legal professional qualification are allowed to engage in non-litigation legal work in Mainland law firms in accordance with the “ Law of the People’s Republic of China on Lawyers ”. 5. The minimum residency requirement is waived for all Hong Kong representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) located in Shenzhen and Guangzhou. For the Hong Kong representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) located in places other than Shenzhen and Guangzhou, their minimum residency requirement is 2 months each year.

Examination and Approval procedure

Special Materials to be Submitted for Examination and Approval

None, except necessary documents and materials.