一名前司法官员表示，国际法律机构在香港开设首个海外办事处，反映出该市作为法律交流枢纽的重要性，其基础是广泛的法律框架和与中国内地的紧密联系。
The opening of an international legal body’s first overseas office in Hong Kong reflects the city’s importance as a hub for legal exchange, underpinned by its broad legal framework and strong ties to mainland China, a former justice minister has said.
国际调解组织（IOMed）秘书长、该市前司法局局长郑若骅周三表示，国际私法统一研究所（Unidroit）本周早些时候开设的地区办事处，是对该市的信心投票。
Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, secretary general for the International Organisation for Mediation (IOMed) and the city’s former secretary for justice, said on Wednesday that the opening of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (Unidroit) regional office earlier this week was a vote of confidence in the city.
“这一切都表明这些机构对将香港作为其国际交流平台的信心，我认为这将提升该市作为国际法律枢纽的地位，”郑若骅在香港法律周论坛的边会上表示。
“They all indicate these bodies’ confidence in using Hong Kong as a platform for their international exchanges, and I think that will enhance the city’s position as an international legal hub,” Cheng said on the sidelines of the Hong Kong Legal Week forum.
Unidroit周一宣布，其香港办事处——该机构在罗马总部之外的第一个办事处——将作为亚太地区联络办事处，面向东南亚经济体，推动该地区更广泛地采用统一商法。
Unidroit announced on Monday that its Hong Kong office – the body’s first outside its Rome headquarters – would serve as an Asia-Pacific liaison office, reaching out to Southeast Asian economies and promoting the wider use of uniform commercial law in the region.
随着Unidroit的入驻，该市现在拥有三大商法机构的办事处，统称为“私法国际三姐妹”。
With Unidroit’s arrival, the city now hosts offices for three major commercial law bodies, known collectively as “the three sisters of private international law”.
另外两个是联合国国际贸易法委员会（Uncitral），它通过发示范法作为各司法管辖区和国际条约的参考，协调国际贸易和商法；以及海牙国际私法会议（HCCH），它专注于解决跨境司法程序中的管辖权问题。
The other two are the United National Commission on International Trade Law (Uncitral), which harmonises international trade and commercial law by issuing model laws as references for jurisdictions and international treaties, and the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), which focuses on resolving jurisdictional authority issues in cross-border judicial procedures.
郑若骅表示，选择香港作为这三个致力于跨司法管辖区协调商法的组织的办事所在地，证明了该市在毗邻大陆法系的中国的情况下，拥有基于普通法体系的强大法治。
Cheng said the choice of Hong Kong to house offices for the three organisations, which work to harmonise commercial laws across jurisdictions, was a testament to the city’s strong rule of law under a common law legal system adjacent to China, a civil law jurisdiction.
“[这些特征]体现了这里法律体系的包容性、广泛性和广度，”郑表示，并补充说，该市一些律师也具备在大湾区执业的资格，大湾区包括香港、澳门以及邻近的广东省九个城市。
“[These features] show the inclusivity and broadness and breadth of the legal system here,” Cheng said, adding that some lawyers in the city were also qualified to practise in the Greater Bay Area, which comprises Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in neighbouring Guangdong province.
作为总部位于香港的IOMed负责人，郑还透露，该成立一年的机构已记录了“更多”成功案例，但出于保密考虑，拒绝提供具体数字。
Cheng, who heads the Hong Kong-headquartered IOMed, also revealed that the one-year-old body had recorded “more” successful cases, but declined to give an exact figure, citing confidentiality.
她的言论紧随本月早些时候披露的该机构第二起已解决案件——一起马来西亚基础设施纠纷。该机构首次披露的成功案例是5月间一起中国一方与新加坡一方之间的海事纠纷。
Her remarks followed her disclosure earlier this month of a second case resolved by the body – an infrastructure dispute in Malaysia. The organisation’s first disclosed success was a maritime dispute between a Chinese party and a Singaporean party in May.
“还有其他成功案例。有些案件正在进行中，而其他当事人正在填写申请表。一些案件正在准备调解协议，”郑表示。
“There are other successful cases. There are some ongoing cases, while other parties are finishing application forms. Some cases are preparing their mediation agreements,” Cheng said.
在拒绝就该政府间机构的声誉发表评论时，郑表示，在解决一起先前纠纷后，一方当事人及对方律师已回到该机构办理进一步案件。
While declining to comment on the intergovernmental body’s reputation, Cheng said one party and a lawyer for the opposing side had returned to the organisation for further cases after resolving a prior dispute.
另据报道，周三在论坛上发言时，律政司司长林定国表示，香港致力于数字化企业间贸易文件，以巩固其作为国际贸易中心的地位，并指出本周将提交《电子交易条例》修订草案。
Separately, speaking at the forum on Wednesday, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok said Hong Kong was committed to digitising business-to-business trade documents to reinforce its role as an international trade hub, pointing to an amendment to the Electronic Transactions Ordinance to be introduced this week.
该修订将参照联合国国际贸易法委员会制定的电子可转让记录示范法。
The amendment would refer to a model law on electronic transferable records produced by Uncitral.
“联合国国际贸易法委员会的工作将比以往任何时候都更加关键，以确保相关法律框架不断与数字经济的发展同步演进，”林定国表示。
“Uncitral’s work will be more critical than ever to ensure the relevant legal framework evolves continuously in line with the development of the digital economy,” Lam said.