LONDON — For the third consecutive year, The Law Society of Hong Kong co-hosted a student sharing seminar in London on Friday with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, held alongside the opening of the Legal Year 2026 in England and Wales.
The event has grown into an annual platform for dialogue, mentorship and inspiration, drawing more than 100 students from leading UK universities over three years. Some have since become mentees of Law Society President Roden Tong Man-lung.
This year’s seminar welcomed students and representatives from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) Students’ Union Asia Careers Society, the UK Joint University Hong Kong Career Society, the University College London (UCL) Asia-Pacific Law Society, and students from LSE, King’s College London, the University of Bristol and UCL.
Drawing on more than two decades of service to the Law Society, Tong urged students to stay humble, be proactive and maintain an international mindset. He stressed that Hong Kong’s legal profession is increasingly global and can no longer be defined by the local market alone.
As the only common law jurisdiction in China under the “one country, two systems” principle with legal professionals fluent in both Chinese and English, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region serves as a super-connector between the Chinese mainland, Asia and the world, he said.
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He highlighted the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Legal Professional Examination as a key opportunity, while warning that competition is rising from multilingual, outward-looking young lawyers across the region.
Tong also said AI will reshape routine legal tasks but cannot replace human qualities such as judgment, empathy, communication and trust. He encouraged students to watch growth areas including AI, fintech, intellectual property and space law.
Earlier that day, Tong spoke at the LAWASIA London 2026 forum, where UK firms showed strong interest in Asia. Together, the events carried one message: the internationalization of Hong Kong’s legal profession is a continuing reality.
