The Shanghai Foreign-Related Adjudication Talent Training Course, co-organised by the Hong Kong International Legal Talents Training Academy and the Shanghai High People’s Court, drew to a close today at the Changning campus of the East China University of Political Science & Law (ECUPL).

Secretary for Justice Paul Lam delivered a video speech at a closing ceremony for the three-day course. Shanghai High People’s Court President Jia Yu also gave a speech.

The course was tailored to the training needs of the 70 judges who make up the first batch of Shanghai’s “foreign-related adjudication talent pool”. Nearly 30 foreign-related adjudication judges from Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui were invited to participate.

The content of the course focused on practical difficulties in foreign-related adjudication, including the characteristics of Hong Kong's common law system under the “one country, two systems” principle; that system’s interplay with the Mainland’s codified law; and issues relating to contract law, evidence, judicial reviews, ascertainment of foreign law and drafting of judgments.

Various experienced legal professionals from Hong Kong, including members of the Hong Kong International Legal Talents Training Expert Committee, gave lectures, assisting participants in better understanding the basic framework and principles of common law and enhancing their ability to handle cross-border cases.

Mr Lam outlined in his speech that under “one country, two systems”, Hong Kong is the only region in the country practicing common law, and is the only bilingual common law jurisdiction globally that uses both Chinese and English as official languages.

He expressed hope that participants on the course gained a deeper understanding of the differences between the common law and civil law systems, in order to strengthen the complementarity of Hong Kong’s common law and Mainland laws.

Additionally, a Hong Kong Common Law Day, co-organised by the Training Academy and the ECUPL, was held yesterday at the ECUPL's Songjiang campus.

It brought together experts from universities and the judicial and legal practice sectors in Hong Kong and the Mainland, to share their views on the common law, the nurturing of foreign-related talent and the handling of cross-border foreign-related disputes.