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AIMS

Hong Kong Academy of Law Limited (“Academy”) was incorporated on 2 September

2008 as a company limited by guarantee and its charitable status was confirmed by the

Inland Revenue Department shortly after its incorporation.

The Academy is promoted by The Law Society of Hong Kong (“Society”) and is

dedicated to reaching out and promoting law through education and training to the

Society Members and to the local and international communities.

The main aims of the Academy are:

(i) to raise public awareness of the rule of law and other core values of the legal

profession;

(ii) to enhance public interest in the learning of law and to promote law as a “public

profession”;

(iii) to nurture social awareness of the connection between law and other community

development; and

(iv) to provide pathway guidance to law students and quality development

programmes for the profession.

COURSES CONDUCTED

In fulfillment of its aims, the Academy conducted 352 Continuing Professional

Development (“CPD”) and Risk Management Education (“RME”) courses during the

year which were presented by 132 presenters and attended by 16,315 participants.

The courses may be broken down into the following categories:

(i) Seminars on new or amended legislation and legal developments. These included

seminars on the revised Individual Income Tax Law of the PRC, Supplement No.

2 of the Guide to Non-Contentious Probate Practice, the Arbitration and Mediation

Legislation (Third Party Funding) (Amendment) Ordinance 2017, open ended fund

companies regime, and the External Mediation Master Scheme.

(ii) Updates on existing law and practice. These included updates on the Anti-Money

Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance Cap .615 (“AMLO”),

Companies Ordinance Cap.622, the revised Practice Direction P (“PD P”), the

United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting

from Mediation, the Building Management Ordinance Cap. 344, on personal

injuries claims, updated judgments on intestate succession and testate succession,

professional conduct cases, property management, property fraud cases,

disability discrimination, insolvency recovery actions, current and continuing

liabilities and duties of listed company directors and compliance requirements.

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(iii) Apart from providing courses on new legislation and updates on existing law

and practice, the Academy provided courses covering different areas of practice

to empower practitioners to maintain their competitive edge in legal practice and

opportunities for networking and exchange of experiences with local, foreign

professionals, and to promote and explore new business opportunities. The

practice areas covered by the courses included arbitration, mediation, legal tech,

company, commercial and corporate finance, civil and criminal procedure,

family law, professional conduct, risk management, advocacy, constitutional and

human rights, discrimination law, personal injuries, probate and conveyancing.

Please click here for details of the presenters and the courses.

Some of the highlights of the courses are:

Anti-Money Laundering (“AML”) and Anti-Corruption

AMLO came into effect on 1 March 2018. The Academy and the Society held three

seminars on AML jointly with the Narcotics Division, Security Bureau of the HKSAR

Government on 28 May, 6 September and 12 December to brief practitioners on the

major provisions of AMLO, with emphasis on their statutory client due diligence and

record keeping requirements when they are engaged in specified transactions, and their

statutory obligations on suspicious transaction reporting. Over 750 participants attended

the seminars.

Mr. Michael Lintern-Smith, Chairman of the AML Committee of the Society (right)

and Mr. Alan Linning, Member of the AML Committee of the Society (left) spoke

at the “AML Seminar for Lawyers” on 6 September.

In addition, the accredited RME course providers of the Society delivered another 4

courses for practitioners and one train-the-trainer course for the RME part-time tutors

on AML for the Academy under the Society’s RME Provider Accreditation Scheme. 287

participants attended the courses.

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The Academy also conducted a seminar entitled “Global Anti-Corruption Risks

Comparison and Conducting Cross-Border Compliance Investigation” on 26 July to

provide practitioners with a basic understanding on the different anti-corruption regime

in major jurisdictions and their potential impact on Hong Kong. 67 participants attended

the seminar.

Wills and Probate

The Academy conducted a course entitled “Risks and Common Mistakes in Will

Drafting and Probate Practice” on 16 May. The course briefed practitioners on their role

in preparing and executing wills, practical tips for conducting due diligence in particular

in matters involving vulnerable testators, the Golden Rule and the common mistakes in

drafting wills, the pitfalls which should be avoided when filling in the Probate Checklist,

and the ways to attend requisitions raised by the Probate Registry. In addition, the

speakers examined Supplement No. 2 of the Guide to Non-Contentious Probate Practice

(“Guide”) which came into effect on 30 August 2018 and the risks involved in the

application of certain rules in the Guide. The speakers were the Chairman and Members

of the Probate Committee of the Society. 294 participants attended the course.

From left to right: Ms. Angelina Luk, Consultant of T. H. Koo & Associates; Ms. Tam

Sau Hing, Sole Proprietor of S. H. Tam & Co.; Mr. Ng Kin Yuen, Partner of Liu, Chan &

Lam; Mr. Wong Tak Shing, Partner of Wong, Shum & Co.; Mr. Herbert Tsoi, Partner of

Herbert Tsoi & Partners (Chairman of the Probate Committee of the Society); Mr. Billy

Ma, Partner of Hobson & Ma; Ms. Viola Hung, Senior Associate of Herbert Tsoi &

Partners; Ms. Au Miu Po, Partner of C. P. Lin & Co.; and Mr. Tsang Kam Chuen, Partner

of Tsang, Chan & Woo, presented the course “Risks and Common Mistakes in Will

Drafting and Probate Practice” on 16 May.

The Academy also conducted 2 workshops entitled “Will Drafting” on 18 May and 14

June to equip delegates with the skills in drafting wills including drafting enduring

powers of attorney and a simple will for estate planning purposes, and drafting more

complex wills involving trust and gifts, attestation clauses, beneficial trusts over residue

and concurrent wills. 60 participants attended the workshops.

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The Academy conducted a seminar entitled “Enduring of Powers of Attorney” (“EPA”)

on 22 February to demonstrate the skills of taking EPA instructions from elderly clients

and brief practitioners on the issues including the pitfalls in completing the prescribed

form under the EPA Ordinance, Cap 501 and the EPA (Prescribed Form) Regulation,

Cap 501A, the mental capacity required for making an EPA, the roles of the witnessing

solicitor and the witnessing doctor, and the logistics of the execution of an EPA. 73

participants attended the course.

Mediation

Mediation has become one of the primary means of alternative dispute resolution in Hong Kong with Practice Direction 31 coming into effect on 1 January 2010. The Academy and the Mediation Committee of the Society conducted 5 sharing sessions on mediation. Topics discussed included interface between mediation and parenting co-ordination, mediation advocacy, negotiation in mediation, United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation and mediation for international and cross border disputes. Over 380 participants attended the sharing sessions.

Mr. Iu Ting Kwok, Consultant of Kwok, Ng & Chan, spoke at the sharing session “United

Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation” on

18 September.

The Judiciary implemented a Pilot Scheme on External Mediation Master (“EMM”

Scheme) in the District Court from January to September 2018 with the aim of

facilitating settlement through mediation at case management summonses or

conferences. The Society, the Academy and the Judiciary jointly organised a sharing

session on the EMM Scheme on 28 August to brief practitioners on the EMM Scheme

and present its major findings. About 100 participants attended the sharing session.

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Legal Tech

The Academy conducted 29 seminars on Legal Tech covering topics including offsite legal research platform, cryptocurrency, bitcoin, blockchain, initial coin offerings, digital forensic, Internet of Things and privacy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence in the legal sector, e-discovery in litigation and preservation of evidence for court, big data in e-discovery and document review, InsurTech, RegTech, Fintech and its regulation and compliance, technology support for legal operations, machine learning, robotics process automation, Python and techno-ethical threats. Over 2,030 participants attended the seminars.

Ms. Jill Wong, Partner of Howse Williams, spoke at the seminar “Fintech:

Regulation and Compliance” on 28 November.

Data Privacy

The Academy conducted a seminar entitled “The Internet of Things (“IoT’) and Privacy”

on 5 June to brief practitioners on the applications and privacy risks associated with

smart city initiatives and IoT with focus on open data and big data analytics. The

seminar also discussed the recommended good practice in balancing privacy rights and

the development of IoT.

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Mr. Stephen Kai-Yi Wong, Privacy

Commissioner for Personal Data (right); Mr.

Amirali B. Nasir, Vice-President of the Society

(left) spoke at the seminar “The Internet of

Things and Privacy” on 5 June.

Another seminar was “Data Privacy, Cybersecurity, the Lawyer” held on 25 June. The

seminar provided a brief overview of the current cybersecurity landscape, symptoms

and causes of the problem. The seminar also discussed the concept of ethical computing

and the ethical-based remedy to protect data privacy and mitigate the risks of data

breaches and computer hacking.

The Academy conducted a seminar entitled “Managing Data Breach” on 18 July to

provide practitioners with an overview of the current data breach situation in Hong

Kong including the types of data and data breach, and the causes of such breaches. The

seminar also discussed the criminal and civil offences of data breach, the ways of

dealing with enforcement agencies and regulators, and the Society’s guidelines on

practitioners’ duty of confidentiality owed to their clients and on information security

for law firms and their staff.

In addition, the Academy conducted 9 courses entitled “Data Privacy and the Law Firm”

under the Risk Management Education (“RME”) Programme.

562 participants attended the courses.

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Civil and Criminal Advocacy

The Academy conducted a 2-day training course on civil practical advocacy on 9 and

10 April to improve and enhance the advocacy skills of practitioners in conducting

interlocutory applications and substantive trials. A half-day training course on civil

written advocacy was held on 15 April. 12 participants and 17 participants attended the

training courses on civil practical advocacy and civil written advocacy respectively.

In addition, the Academy conducted a training course on civil advocacy on 20

September to brief practitioners on the procedural steps in civil advocacy and

demonstrated the advocacy skills in interlocutory applications. The Academy also

conducted a training course on criminal advocacy on 21 November. The speaker shared

with the participants techniques and practical tips on criminal advocacy, and what to

expect as an advocate in the Hong Kong courts. The two courses were attended by over

130 participants.

Mr. Jonathan Midgley, Partner of Haldanes, spoke at the seminar “Criminal

Advocacy” on 21 November.

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Human Rights

The Society conducted a training programme on the Unified Screening Mechanism

(“USM”) from 16 to 18 September. Topics discussed in the training programme

included the definition of refugee under the Convention against Torture and other Cruel,

Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, operation of the USM, the scope of

subsidiary protection in Hong Kong, making assessments, and the role of the United

Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (“UNHCR”) under the USM. About 120

participants attended the training programme.

Professor James C. Hathaway, the James E. and Sarah A. Degan Professor of Law

and Director of Program in Refugee and Asylum Law of University of Michigan,

U.S.A. (first from left), the Hon. Sir Nicholas Blake, Associate Member of Matrix

Chambers, U.K. (second from left), Mr. Mark Daly, Principal of Daly & Associates

(second from the right) and Mr. Philip Thorpe, Senior Protection Associate and

Officer-In-Charge of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Hong

Kong (first from the right) were the speakers of the “Training Programme on the

USM” held from 16 to 18 September.

In addition, the Academy conducted a seminar entitled “Human Trafficking” on 9

August to provide practitioners with an understanding of common forms of human

trafficking in Hong Kong, including the modus operandi of traffickers, and an

introduction to possible civil and criminal legal redress avenues for victims in Hong

Kong. 58 participants attended the seminar.

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Pathway Guidance

A sharing session with law students working as interns in law firms was conducted

whereby speakers from private practice, the Judiciary, the Department of Justice and

the commercial sector shared their insights in the many career options open to law

students. 50 interns and trainee solicitors participated in the sharing session.

Mr. Amirali B. Nasir, Vice-President of the Society (first from the left), Mr.

Wesley Wong, SC, JP, Solicitor General, Legal Policy Division, Department of

Justice (second from the left), Ms. Ming Chung, Account Director and Legal

Officer of ESSAR Insurance Services Limited (second from the right) and Mr.

David CW Cheung, Acting Principal Adjudicator, Small Claims Tribunal (first

from right) shared their experiences as a practitioner in their respective fields in

the “Sharing Session with Law Firm Interns” on 22 July.

STATISTICS

RME electives under the RME Programme have since 1 November 2008 been offered

free of charge to those participants who have to fulfil their RME obligations in the

relevant RME practice year and who have not attended any other RME electives during

that year. Free core courses have also been offered by the Academy to all trainee

solicitors since 1 November 2009. With effect from 1 November 2014, to mark the 10th

Anniversary of the RME Programme, the Principals’ Core Courses, Non-Principals’

Core Courses, Registered Foreign Lawyers’ Core Courses and the Compulsory First

Elective Courses for Trainee Solicitors are also offered free of charge. Accordingly, all

courses within the RME Programme are free.

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The total number of courses and free courses in each of the 12 years from 2008 to 2019

are as follows:

The total number of participants and the number of participants attending free courses

organized by the Academy in each of the 12 years from 2008 to 2019 are as follow:

20

251229

250

288311

352

417

309

277 265 267

28

415

468

393

470

508 509

474

383369

352 352

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

2008

(from 2

September

2008 to 31

December

2008)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

No

. o

f tr

ain

ing

cou

rses

Year

No. of courses organised by the Academy from 2008 to 2019

No. of free courses

Total no. of courses

2,981

14,025

6,775

8,249

10,223

11,470

14,192

14,847

9,559 8,474 8,705

9,240

3,065

20,582

13,370

15,160 15,471

16,829

18,509

17,210 16,789 16,795 16,870

16,315

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

2008

(from 2

September

2008 to 31

December

2008)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

No

. o

f p

arti

cip

an

ts

Year

No. of participants in the courses organised by the Academy

from 2008 to 2019

No. of participants attending free seminars

No. of participants

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SPONSORSHIPS, DONATIONS, SCHOLARSHIPS AND BURSARIES

In fulfilment of its aim of promoting the learning of law, the Academy made available

the following:

(i) The Peter Alan Lee Vine Memorial Scholarship;

(ii) Bursaries;

(iii) Sponsorships for attending local and international conferences.

Details of the applications and the eligibility criteria for applying for sponsorships,

scholarships and bursaries are posted on the website of the Academy

http://www.hklawacademy.org/.

The Academy approved one application for bursary during the year.

The Academy and the Society co-hosted the Professional Indemnity and Risk

Management Conference with LawAsia in June whilst sponsorships were provided by

the Society, instead of the Academy, to 11 participants to attend the Conference. The

Academy provided logistical support to the Conference.

UPDATED DEVELOPMENTS

Two new electives were introduced into the RME Programme during the year. They are

“Practice Management” and “Data Privacy and Law Firm”. Including these new courses,

the Academy is offering 26 regular courses under the RME Programme. Additional part-

time tutors with experience in the management of law firms were recruited to conduct

the practice management course.

The course evaluation form for RME courses was amended to include an invitation to

participants for suggestions on topics relating to risk management which they would

like the Academy to present.

The Academy continued to explore ways to enhance the effectiveness of the RME

Programme. The Academy appointed a course provider to review the core courses, to

develop international best practices for incorporation into the course materials with the

aim of raising the Programme to international standard. Recommendations made by the

consultants such as standardization of the course accreditation process, implementation

of a quality management system and establishment of a curriculum advisory committee

are being considered. The Academy also commissioned a course provider to develop

checklists to help practitioners focus on the ethical requirements set out in the core

courses and electives and to inculcate a risk – averse and compliant practice

environment. These projects are ongoing.

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The Academy, in collaboration with the Society, stepped up its efforts to export the RME

Programme to overseas jurisdictions, in particular, the ASEAN countries. The Academy

applied for registration of its trademark in Macao, Taiwan and Mainland China.

Registration in Macao and Taiwan is complete. Registration in Mainland was rejected

by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board but the Academy was successful in

its appeal to the Beijing People’s Court. The Beijing People’s Court has invited the

Trademark Review and Adjudication Board to re-examine the application of the

Academy and the Academy is waiting for the result of the re-examination.

To facilitate practitioners to attend its courses, the Academy introduced online

registration for RME courses during the year.