Events

On 23 December 2022, the Director of Legal Aid, Mr Chris Chong (fifth from right, centre row); former Director of Legal Aid, Mr Thomas Kwong (ninth from right, centre row); colleagues of the Legal Aid Department and members from other bureaux/departments and the Law Society of Hong Kong joined the Carol Singing Festival organized by the Child Development Matching Fund at Lee Tung Avenue, Wanchai. With the group raising funds for the next generation and singing a rich variety of festive songs altogether, the street is filled with a warm and joyous atmosphere.

On 13 December 2022, the Director of Legal Aid, Mr Chris Chong (left) and Assistant Principal Legal Aid Counsel (Application & Processing) Ms Amy Lee (right) attended the Christmas cocktail party held by the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers and took a photo with the Chief Executive of HKFI, Ms Selina Lau (middle).

On 10 December 2022, the Director of Legal Aid, Mr Chris Chong (seventh from left, back row) officiated at the opening ceremony of Teen Talk 2022 “Sports, Law & Discipline” Sports and Music Carnival cum Law Week 2022. Also officiating at the opening ceremony were the Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam (fifth from left, front row); the Deputy Secretary for Justice, Mr Horace Cheung (seventh from left, front row); and the President of The Law Society of Hong Kong, Mr C. M. Chan (sixth from left, front row).

On 5 and 6 November 2022, a total of 13 Professional Officers of the Department participated in the “Free Legal Advice Programme” held at the ground floor area of Hopewell Centre in Wanchai. This was organised by the Law Society of Hong Kong as one of its events for Law Week 2022. Professional Officers manned the department’s booth and answered public enquiries on issues relating to legal aid services. The picture shows two of the participating Professional Officers, Senior Legal Aid Counsel / Application & Processing, Ms Katrina Ng, and Senior Legal Aid Counsel / Kowloon Branch Office, Ms Sally Cheung (fourth & fifth left) with Law Society representatives.

On 27 October 2022, Legal Aid Counsel / Kowloon Branch Office, Ms Maggie Chau (right), and Senior Law Clerk I / Kowloon Branch Office and Mr Gary Cheng (left) hosted a talk for social security officers and frontline staff from the Social Welfare Department and non-governmental organisations and introduced the department’s work and legal aid services relating to family issues including divorce, maintenance, child custody and guardianship of minor.

On 18 October 2022, Assistant Principal Legal Aid Counsel / Legal and Management Support, Ms Christina Hadiwibawa, conducted a training course “Update on Legal Aid Schemes” organised by the Hong Kong Academy of Law via webinar.

On 15 Oct 2022, Legal Aid Counsel / Legal and Management Support, Miss Shirley Lo, participated in the shooting of a short legal tips video. This is one of the events of the Law Week 2022 organised by the Law Society. In the video, she briefly introduced about the means and merits test for legal aid application.

On 12 October 2022, Senior Legal Aid Counsel / Civil Litigation, Ms Rita Chin (left) and Legal Aid Counsel / Kowloon Branch Office, Mr Jackson Lai (right) hosted a talk for social workers and frontline staff of the Social Welfare Department, Hospital Authority and non-governmental organisations and introduced the department’s work and legal aid services relating to family issues including divorce, maintenance, child custody and family mediation.

On 29 September 2022, Senior Legal Aid Counsel / Crime, Mr David Chow (left) delivered a career talk on legal aid services and the work of Legal Aid Counsel to a group of law students at the University of Hong Kong.

On 29 July 2022, a group of 12 secondary school students under the “Life Buddies” Mentoring Scheme visited the Legal Aid Department. Led by the mentoring team consisted of Legal Aid Counsel, the students also attended hearings at the High Court followed by a debriefing and discussion session on their experiences throughout the day.

On 28 July 2022, 18 students from two secondary schools visited the Legal Aid Department through the Job Shadow Day organised by the Junior Achievement Hong Kong. The Deputy Director of Legal Aid / Policy & Administration, Mr Steve Wong, introduced them to the services of the Legal Aid Department. Thereafter, the students joined 10 Legal Aid Counsels to their work to gain an up-close understanding of a counsel’s routine.

On 18 July 2022, Deputy Director of Legal Aid (Application & Processing) Ms Juliana Chan and Assistant Principal Legal Aid Counsel (Application & Processing) Ms Amy Lee hosted a workshop for members of the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers on topics relating to civil legal aid schemes and measures to prevent abuse of legal aid.

On 18 January 2022, Senior Legal Aid Counsel / Civil Litigation, Ms Rita Chin, hosted a talk via online platform for frontline staff and volunteers of Po Leung Kuk Tsui Lam Centre and introduced the work and services of the Department relating to family issues such as divorce, maintenance, child custody and application for restraining order.