The Rise of Liberal Cause Lawyering in Hong Kong: Roles, Opportunities, and Constraints.

What roles can liberal cause lawyers play in defending and promoting civil liberties and democracy in an semi-authoritarian regime? What are the opportunities and constraints of engaging in liberal cause lawyering in an semi-authoritarian regime? In thinking about these questions, this paper examines Hong Kong. Hong Kong provides a natural experiment - an existing court with independent powers in a political system in which sovereignty was transferred from Britain to China a decade ago. Since the change in the sovereignty, Hong Kong has witnessed a dramatic rise of legal mobilization. Citizens and social groups are increasingly going to the courts to challenge the Hong Kong government. A group of liberal cause lawyers have played a critical role in the processes, as they have represented the litigants in the majority of civil rights and public policy litigation in the appellant courts.This paper studies the rise of liberal cause lawyering in post-colonial Hong Kong, including their origins, roles, opportunities, constraints and impact. It argues that these liberal cause lawyers have played an important but under-studied role in promoting and sustaining the rule of law in Hong Kong. The paper is primarily based on the author's interviews with liberal cause lawyers, rights advocacy organizations and government officials. I will also draw data from local newspapers, magazines and books. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]