Bar Says It Supports Legal Aid Reform In Principle

The Bar Association said it supports proposed legal aid reform in principle, but the association also urged the government to make sure it would not violate Article 35 of the Basic Law that guarantees people's right to choose their own lawyers.

Under the proposal, legal aid recipients in criminal cases could no longer choose their own lawyers unless under exceptional circumstances. It would also lower the number of legal aid cases a lawyer could accept every year.

Authorities said the proposed changes could expand the pool of lawyers providing legal aid services and better protect the interests of aid recipients.

At a Legco Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal Affairs on Tuesday, lawmakers such as the DAB's Holden Chow, Regina Ip of the New People's Party and independent Paul Tse voiced support for the proposal, saying it would prevent a small number of lawyers from taking up most of the criminal cases.

Bar Association chairman Paul Harris said the association welcomes in principle proposals to ensure a more equitable legal aid system, but cautioned against potential conflict with the Basic Law.

"The matter that obviously springs out of this paper is that whatever change is made with regard to nomination arrangement will have to be compliant with Article 35 of the Basic Law and it may be that a bit of work is needed to devise a scheme that is compliant and can't be challenged on those grounds," he said.

Barrister Johnny Ma from the association said under the new proposal, aid recipients may have to resort to less experienced lawyers.

Director of Administration Daniel Cheng said the right to choose lawyers under Article 35 of the Basic Law is not an absolute right.

"The director of legal aid has the power and duty to impose reasonable restrictions. Now what does this right protect? It is to ensure that Hong Kong residents can have access to legal representatives, so as to have a fair trial," he said.

"Of course the public can also hire their own private lawyer or apply for legal aid. This right does not include selecting a particular lawyer and it does not mean that a person must get the lawyer of their choice."