A career as Government Counsel in the Department of Justice offers a unique opportunity to apply and develop your professional ability. Government Counsel work with various bureaux and departments as well as law enforcement agencies and participate in legal decisions and processes concerning matters of public importance. Diverse and challenging roles that are not found in the private sector are available. We invite applications from both newly qualified lawyers (including those who expect to finish their training in summer 2026) and those with experience. We offer considerable job satisfaction, competitive salaries and fringe benefits, with prospects for promotion to higher positions.
| Entry requirements : | |||
| Candidates – | (a) | must be - | |
| (i) | solicitors admitted in Hong Kong (Note : Candidates who will complete their training as a trainee solicitor in Hong Kong on or before 30 September 2026 may also apply. Their appointment, however, will be subject to their admission as solicitors in Hong Kong); or | ||
| (ii) | barristers with one year’s professional experience since attaining the right to full practice in Hong Kong (Note : Barristers with right to full practice in Hong Kong but who do not possess one year’s professional experience since attaining the right to full practice may also apply. If selected, they will enter at an appropriate point below the minimum of the Government Counsel pay scale. Candidates who will complete their pupillage in Hong Kong on or before 30 September 2026 may also apply. Their appointment, however, will be subject to their admission as barristers in Hong Kong with satisfactory completion of pupillage); | ||
| (b) | must have a Level 2 result Note (1) in the Use of English Notes (2) and (3) paper and a Level 1 result in the Use of Chinese Note (2) paper in the Common Recruitment Examination (CRE). Candidates without the requisite CRE results but who have met the other entry requirements may also apply. Appointment will be subject to their obtaining Level 2 in the Use of English paper and Level 1 in the Use of Chinese paper of the CRE on or before 31 August 2026. Candidates who do not have Level 1 in the Use of Chinese paper of the CRE by the time of appointment may also be appointed. However, only a limited number of applicants who do not possess the requisite Chinese language proficiency may be appointed subject to the operational needs of the Department. Please visit Civil Service Bureau’s website at https://www.csb.gov.hk for details of the CRE; and | ||
| (c) | must have a pass result in the Basic Law and National Security Law Test Note (4). | ||
Duties : To be deployed in the Department of Justice undertaking criminal advocacy, civil litigation, legal advisory work (criminal, civil, national security and public international law), bilingual legislative drafting, commercial law, mutual legal assistance, legal policy work as well as formulation and implementation of law-related policies, etc. For operational or career development purposes, Government Counsel will be deployed to work in any offices/divisions of the Department of Justice, such as the Secretary for Justice’s Office, Civil Division, Prosecutions Division, Constitutional and Policy Affairs Division, International Law Division, Law Drafting Division or National Security Prosecutions Division. More information about the Department’s work can be found at the website (https://www.doj.gov.hk).
Salary : Master Pay Scale Point 32 to 44 (currently HK$77,855 to HK$119,650) per month. Subject to the prevailing situation, candidates may be considered for the granting of increments with additional relevant post-qualification experience above the stipulated minimum requirement.
Terms of Appointment : A new recruit will normally be appointed on civil service probationary terms for three years. Upon passage of probation bar, he/she may be considered for appointment on the prevailing permanent terms.
Promotion Prospects : Promotion opportunities to the rank of Senior Government Counsel may arise. The current starting salary of Senior Government Counsel is HK$127,700 per month.
| Notes: | |
| (1) | The results of the Use of Chinese (UC) and Use of English (UE) papers in the CRE are classified as Level 2, Level 1 or Fail, with Level 2 being the highest. |
| (2) | For civil service appointment purpose, Level 5 or above in Chinese Language of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSEE); or Grade C or above in Chinese Language and Culture or Chinese Language and Literature of the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE), are accepted as equivalent to Level 2 in the UC paper of the CRE. Level 4 in Chinese Language of the HKDSEE; or Grade D in Chinese Language and Culture or Chinese Language and Literature of the HKALE, are accepted as equivalent to Level 1 in the UC paper of the CRE. Besides, Level 5 or above in English Language of the HKDSEE; or Grade C or above in Use of English of the HKALE; or Grade C or above in English Language of the General Certificate of Education (Advanced Level) (GCE A Level), are accepted as equivalent to Level 2 in the UE paper of the CRE. Level 4 in English Language of the HKDSEE; or Grade D in Use of English of the HKALE; or Grade D in English Language of the GCE A Level, are accepted as equivalent to Level 1 in the UE paper of the CRE. |
| (3) | Candidates with an overall band of 6.5 or above with no subtest score below band 6 obtained in the same sitting in the Academic Module of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) within the two-year validity period of the test result are accepted as equivalent to Level 2 in the UE paper of the CRE. The IELTS test result must be valid on any date during the period from 22 August 2025 (i.e. the starting day of the application period) to 31 August 2026. |
| (4) | All applicants for civil service jobs will be assessed on their knowledge of the Basic Law and the National Security Law. A pass result in the Basic Law and National Security Law Test is an entry requirement for all civil service jobs. Only those candidates who have passed the Basic Law and National Security Law Test will be considered for appointment. For candidates who have not taken the relevant Basic Law and National Security Law Test or have not attained a pass result in the relevant Basic Law and National Security Law Test at the time of application, they may still apply for the job and arrangements will be made for them to take the relevant Basic Law and National Security Law Test during the recruitment process. |
Recruitment Briefing : A recruitment briefing will be organised for potential applicants of the Government Counsel post on 3 September 2025 at 5:30 p.m. Applicants can register to attend the recruitment briefing either in person or online. For details, please visit our website (https://www.doj.gov.hk/en/career/counsel.html).
| How to apply : | ||
| (1) | Applicants must apply online through the G.F. 340 Online Application System of the Civil Service Bureau (https://www.csb.gov.hk) by 12 September 2025 at 6:00 p.m. Hong Kong Time. Applications which are incomplete or submitted in person, by post, by fax or by e-mail will not be accepted. (Enquiry Telephone Number: 3703 6550 / 3703 6551). | |
| (2) | After submitting the application through the G.F. 340 Online Application System, candidates should send a full C.V. by email to prappt@doj.gov.hk on or before 12 September 2025 at 6:00 p.m. Hong Kong Time. The online application number should be quoted in the email. If candidates fail to provide the C.V. as requested, their applications will not be considered. The C.V. should at least include the following information - | |
| (a) | gradings of the subjects taken in public examinations from secondary education onwards (with exact dates of scoring the results); | |
| (b) | results in LLB, JD, CPE, PCLL or corresponding examinations listing the gradings of the subjects taken (with copies of transcripts and certificates); | |
| (c) | exact date and place of admission/call (for trainee solicitors and pupils, please give the date of completion of training or pupillage); | |
| (d) | employment records with detailed description of duties; and | |
| (e) | work preferences. Candidates should indicate the office/division(s) (listed below) which they are interested in (in order of priority) in the C.V.:
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| (3) | As invitations or notifications will be sent to candidates by email, candidates should provide an accurate email address in their application. Candidates are responsible for checking their emails to ensure that invitation(s) or notification(s) can reach them timeously. | |
| (4) | Candidates who are selected for interview will normally receive an invitation in about six to eight weeks after the closing date for application. Those who are not invited for interview may assume that their applications are unsuccessful. | |
| General Notes : | |
| (1) | Candidates must be permanent residents of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region at the time of appointment. |
| (2) | As an Equal Opportunities Employer, the Government is committed to eliminating discrimination in employment. The vacancy advertised is open to all applicants meeting the basic entry requirement irrespective of their disability, sex, marital status, pregnancy, age, family status, sexual orientation and race. |
| (3) | Civil service vacancies are posts on the civil service establishment. Candidates selected for these vacancies will be appointed on civil service terms of appointment and conditions of service and will become civil servants on appointment. |
| (4) | The entry pay, terms of appointment and conditions of service to be offered are subject to the provisions prevailing at the time the offer of appointment is made. |
| (5) | The information on the maximum pay point is for reference only and may be subject to changes. |
| (6) | Fringe benefits include paid leave, medical and dental benefits, and where appropriate, assistance in housing. |
| (7) | Where a large number of candidates meet the specified entry requirements, the recruiting department may devise shortlisting criteria to select the better qualified candidates for further processing. In these circumstances, only shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend recruitment examination and/or interview. |
| (8) | It is Government policy to place people with a disability in appropriate jobs wherever possible. If a disabled candidate meets the entry requirements, he/she will be invited to attend the selection interview/written examination without being subject to further shortlisting. Applicants who have declared disabilities found suitable for appointment may be given an appropriate degree of preference over other applicants whose suitability for appointment is considered comparable to that of the former. The Government policy and other related measures on employment of persons with disabilities are set out in the booklet “Employ People Based on Their Abilities - Application for Government Jobs by Persons with Disabilities” which is available for reference on the Civil Service Bureau’s website at https://www.csb.gov.hk under “Administration of the Civil Service – Appointments”. |
| (9) | Applications from serving civil servants at Government Counsel rank would not normally be considered. |
| (10) | Towards the application deadline, our on-line system would likely be overloaded due to large volume of applications. To ensure timely completion of your on-line application, it is advisable to submit the application as early as possible. |
* ALL APPLICATIONS WILL BE HANDLED IN STRICT CONFIDENCE.