The Department of Justice (DoJ) announced today (December 1) the setting up of the Committee on Provision of Space in the Legal Hub so as to consider the mechanism for providing space to law-related organisations in the West Wing of the former Central Government Offices (CGO) and the former French Mission Building (FMB) in Central.

Pursuant to the policy objective of enhancing Hong Kong's status as an international legal and dispute resolution centre in the Asia Pacific region, the Government will provide certain space in the West Wing of the former CGO and the entire former FMB, upon the relocation of the Court of Final Appeal from there, to law-related organisations. Together with the DoJ's offices to be housed in the Main Wing, East Wing and part of West Wing of the former CGO, the area will form a legal hub at the heart of Hong Kong.

Chaired by the Secretary for Justice, the committee will comprise non-official members from the legal, business and other relevant sectors, as well as representatives from the Home Affairs Bureau, Architectural Services Department and Department of Justice, for a term of two years from December 1, 2014 to November 30, 2016.

The committee will consider the arrangements in relation to the provision of space in the legal hub and to accordingly advise the Secretary for Justice, including:

(a) selection of law-related organisations to be housed in the West Wing of the former CGO and former FMB, based on assessment of the relative merits of prospective organisations;
(b) allocation of office space to the selected organisations based on relevant factors for consideration;
(c) determination of rental charges for the selected organisations;
(d) determination of appropriate terms and conditions of tenancy to be offered to selected organisations; and
(e) review of the procedural mechanism from time to time.

The membership of the committee is as follows:

Mr Rimsky Yuen, SC, Secretary for Justice (Chairman)
Mr Junius K Y Ho
Mr Lee Shing-see, GBS, OBE, JP
Ms Kim M Rooney
Miss Adeline Wong, JP
Mr Raymond Yip
Representatives of the Home Affairs Bureau, Architectural Services Department and DoJ

Ends/Monday, December 1, 2014