The National People's Congress Standing Committee approved amendments to the Lawyers Law on August 28, creating a legal basis for qualified Hong Kong and Macau lawyers to practise in nine Guangdong cities in the Greater Bay Area from September 1.
The nine cities are Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing. The amended law allows eligible lawyers from Hong Kong and Macau to practise there after passing the Greater Bay Area lawyer practice examination and obtaining a mainland lawyer's practising certificate.
According to i-CABLE News, lawyers meeting those requirements will be able to handle some civil and commercial legal matters in the nine cities. The report did not specify the full range of work covered by the arrangement.
More than 650 Hong Kong and Macau lawyers had obtained the relevant qualification by June, according to i-CABLE News.
Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ka-chiu welcomed the amendment. He said it would provide a national legal basis for the Greater Bay Area lawyer system to become a regular arrangement, and that lawyers holding dual practising qualifications could help connect rules and mechanisms.
The sources do not set out the examination's detailed eligibility requirements, arrangements or application process. They also do not provide a complete list of the civil and commercial legal matters that qualified lawyers will be permitted to handle.