The Securities and Futures Composite Bill might generate so much legal work that Hong Kong could find itself short of lawyers qualified to do it.
The bill, which goes before the Legislative Council by the end of the year, seeks to introduce tougher penalties for breaches of the law and impose stricter disclosure requirements. More firms will have to turn to the legal profession for advice on compliance. The result: an increase in the amount of regulatory investment work coming in from securities houses and merchant banks.
Will Hong Kong have enough lawyers capable of handling the workload? Possibly not.
'In the securities market, there is a general shortage of middle range lawyers,' said Larry Kwok, a senior partner at Kwok & Yih in association with Blake, Dawson, Waldron.
In the short run, that could create a gap between legal supply and demand. But Mr Kwok believes the gap will be filled as lawyers are lured to this new high-demand corner of the legal field. 'In the long run, there will be more lawyers who specialise in this field,' Mr Kwok said.
If the bottom line is more work for lawyers, then the new bill is good news for the legal profession. But Mr Kwok said it is even better news for the investing public. It also seeks to make legislation easier to understand. Part of this aim will be achieved by creating a rule book that consolidates all existing legislation in Hong Kong that bears any relevance to the securities market.
'Investors or professionals can look to one piece of legislation for guidance,' Mr Kwok said.
