​Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Justice, Ms Teresa Cheng, SC, at a media session after attending the Legislative Council meeting today (June 9):

Reporter: Secretary, could you explain the timing of the proposal? Is it to retain the lawyers in the DoJ? And also, why only legal officers can enjoy this special treatment but not other solicitors?

Secretary for Justice: A very interesting question. That's always been troubling me for a while. Why is it that my colleagues in the Department of Justice who are, by their qualification as a solicitor, doing very well and very efficiently with great eloquence and advocacy in the Court of Final Appeal but not being recognised when they are actually even better than their counterparts? For that reason, I have always been thinking how we are going to overcome that problem. It triggered my determination to take this further forward when our Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Ms Lam (Ms Vinci Lam, SC), took silk on May 29. That really showed that the formality has to be gone away with, so that in all fairness to those of my colleagues who are having great advocacy with the requisite requirements as provided in Section 31A of the Legal Practitioners Ordinance, they will have the same chance of being considered to be granted this particular recognition that society as a whole will cherish.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

Ends/Wednesday, June 9, 2021