Efforts aim to make HK leading maritime center

Closer cooperation between Hong Kong’s legal and maritime sectors will turn the city into a “high value-added” maritime services center, professionals and leaders from both industries say.

This will help to boost Hong Kong’s maritime arbitration, finance, trade and insurance services and make them more attractive globally.

These views were expressed at a themed symposium — When Hong Kong Lawyers Meet Shipping Enterprises — on Tuesday organized by the Hong Kong and Mainland Legal Profession Association.

With the steady rise of port cities on the Chinese mainland and changes in shipping lanes, Hong Kong’s seaborne cargo throughput has gradually lost its edge, said Zhu Jianhui, president of COSCO Shipping International (Hong Kong).

Therefore, incorporating legal and maritime sectors will boost the local shipping industry, helping it recover, said Zhu.

The possibility of developing the city as an international legal services and arbitration center for maritime enterprises comes at a time when Hong Kong has abundant legal and professional resources, said Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah.

Legal services are an indispensable part of the maritime service chain, Cheng noted. Hong Kong can provide professional legal and arbitration services for shipping finance, ship purchases and sales, marine insurance and so on.

To date, more than 900 local law firms and nearly 100 registered foreign law firms operate in the city with about 11,000 Hong Kong solicitors and 1,500 registered foreign lawyers, according to statistics from the Law Society of Hong Kong.

Vice-President of the Law Society Chan Chak-ming said the SAR’s legal sector is considered very transparent by overseas lawyers — especially those from common law jurisdictions.

Lawyers from different backgrounds will improve services offered to international shipping firms, noted Chan.

However, Hong Kong’s status is not yet widely recognized. Lam Kwan, chief executive officer of Great Harvest Maeta Group Holding, a Hong Kongbased company engaged in chartering vessels, said the maritime sector still knew little about many legal issues.

As enterprises are not clear about legal procedures, they often end up choosing London as the place to resolve their business disputes, according to Lam.

Agreeing with Lam, VicePresident of the Hong Kong and Mainland Legal Profession Association Edward Liu Yang, said lawyers in the city should acquire more knowledge about the shipping industry.

Liu called for more opportunities for the legal and maritime sectors to exchange ideas and gain mutual understanding. After this, even more collaboration could be achieved, he added.

According to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Hong Kong was the world’s fourth largest shipping register in 2017.