Legal 178 SARs lawyers gain GBA practice

A total of 178 lawyers from Macau and Hong Kong have obtained qualifications to practise in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and are now operating in Guangzhou, as the city’s legal sector reaches a new milestone with the issuance of its 30,000th practising certificate.

Director of the Guangzhou Municipal Justice Bureau Deng Zhongwen presented the credential to the practising lawyer before an audience of more than 160 newly admitted lawyers.

The achievement underscores the rapid expansion of Guangzhou’s legal profession, which now comprises 1,188 law firms, including 45 with more than 100 lawyers on staff.

According to municipal statistics, 27% of the city’s lawyers hold a master’s degree or higher, while lawyers under 40 account for 61% of the workforce, reflecting a young and highly educated talent pool.

The development forms part of a broader push to strengthen legal services across the GBA.

Authorities have rolled out a suite of policy measures aimed at elevating the city’s legal capabilities, including a dedicated plan for the high-quality development of foreign-related legal services and 23 specific initiatives designed to achieve a “three-year foundation-building and five-year leapfrog” strategy for the sector.

Currently, more than 2,500 lawyers in Guangzhou are actively engaged in foreign-related legal work, and 10 Guangzhou-based firms have opened 20 overseas branches across 10 countries and regions, including Vietnam and Italy, further extending the city’s legal reach.