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Ⅴ. Development Prospects and Strategic Analysis of Hong Kong Legal Practitioners in the GBA

January 25, 2022, the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court made the first nationwide ruling, recognising and

assisting in a Hong Kong insolvency case: recognising the insolvency proceedings of Samson Paper Company
Limited in Hong Kong and the Hong Kong liquidator. Data cross-border flow, intellectual property rights, and

insolvency restructuring are closely related to business operations and the legal services market. While improving
the business environment in both regions, these developments also provide greater impetus to the legal services

industry.

5.1.4 Hong Kong legal practitioners have room to expand business in the Mainland

Among those Hong Kong law firms participating in the survey, their GBA business mainly focus on handling

litigation cases in Hong Kong (47%), providing China-Appointed Attesting Officers’ services (41.2%), assisting
clients with the set up of Hong Kong or overseas companies (34%), handling probate matters (34%), and dealing

with foreign-related transactions (35.9%).
During interviews with GBA enterprises, 95.4% of the companies express a need for Hong Kong legal

services. 72.7% of clients indicate that the demand for legal services from Hong Kong lawyers in the GBA is
expected to gradually increase in the future. Apart from traditional foreign-related business services (providing

legal services for foreign inbound investment, international trade, foreign-related contracts, foreign-related
financing, foreign-related property rights, and foreign-related civil and commercial legal matters), and corporate

services (handling procedures for the set up of Hong Kong or overseas companies, planning for corporate
management structures, property rights management planning), notarization services (China-Appointed Attesting

Officer and International Notarization Service), there is also a high demand for legal consultation (providing
legal opinions related to Hong Kong or overseas laws) and legal advisory services (serving as legal advisors on

annual retainer, providing legal opinions related to Hong Kong or overseas laws). Specifically, the demand for
legal consultation services is particularly high, with 86.3% of interviewed clients expressing a need in this area.

Overall, there is a broad demand in the GBA for diverse legal services provided by Hong Kong law
firms. Enterprises do not only seek traditional legal representation services but also increasingly require legal

consultation and advisory services. For Hong Kong legal practitioners, offering more comprehensive and
multi-dimensional legal services will help meet the growing and diverse needs of GBA enterprises. With the

vigorous development of the GBA economy and its enormous market potential, entering this market can provide
Hong Kong law firms with a broader market and opportunities to explore potential client groups. In addition,

integrating into the GBA development facilitates better collaboration between Hong Kong legal practitioners and
the Mainland counterparts, allowing them to seize development opportunities together.

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