法律援助署五十周年紀念特刊 | Legal Aid Department 50th Anniversary Commemorative Publication

P.22 署長(右三)為香港律師會舉辦的「法律周 2018及青teen講場2018」主持開幕典禮。 Kwong (third right) officiated at the opening ceremony of Law Week 2018 and Teen Talk 2018 which was organised by The Law Society of Hong Kong. 登上高峰 1987年，署長回到香港加入法律援助署，成為法律援助律師。 他回港時正值1984年中英聯合聲明簽署之後，不少人才紛紛 移居外地。到了1994年，他獲認許為英格蘭和威爾斯最高法院 及香港高等法院的律師，並於2008年獲委任為法律援助署 副署長。2013年，他接替陳香屏成為署長。 「我加入法援署時並沒有想過會當上署長。」署長笑言， 並分享獲委以重任時的感受：「我接任署長時，首要任務是與 各界持份者加強溝通，以鞏固我們協助尋求公義的目標。通過 溝通，我們知道不同人士的需要，以及可以改進的地方。我們 主動接觸相關的持份者，包括兩個法律專業團體、法律援助服 務局、非政府機構、立法會及區議會，以及法援申請人，商討 如何改善我們的服務。例如在提供法援服務後，我們邀請申請 人填寫問卷。這讓我們了解需要改善的範疇。我們達到的整體 成效令人鼓舞，真的感謝各界的支持。我亦非常高興政府繼續 給予我們很大的自由度，讓我們妥善地處理現時的工作。」 Path to Top Job Kwong returned to Hong Kong and joined Legal Aid Department in 1987 as Legal Aid Counsel. He came back at a time when many of the city’s leading residents were exiting following the 1984 signing of the Sino-British Joint Declaration. Kwong was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales and the High Court of Hong Kong in 1994, and was appointed Deputy Director of the Department in 2008. In 2013, he succeeded William Chan Heung Ping and took over as Director of the Department. “I never thought I would be Director of the Department,” Kwong admits with a chuckle, recalling the moment when he was awarded the top job. “Strengthening communication with our stakeholders as a means to enhance access to justice was my top priority when I first took over. Through communication, we learn who needs what. We learn where we can do better. We reach out to our stakeholders, including the two Legal Professional Bodies, the Legal Aid Services Council, non-governmental organisations, Legislative and District Councillors, and legal aid applicants, to determine how we could improve our services. For example, after we provide legal aid services to applicants, we ask them to fill out a questionnaire. This enables us to determine what aspects we could improve upon. The results have been most encouraging overall, and we are grateful for our stakeholders’ support. Further, I am very happy that the government continues to give us a very free hand to do our jobs properly.” 公義根基、精英團隊 An Elite Team for Justice