Law meets social work: Mr Chong Yip Fung shares his seminar on "Juvenile Offenders, Mental Illness and Criminal Law".

Mr. Vincent Chong, a solicitor of our firm, together with Mr Alan Ko, Barrister-at-Law, Mr Edmund Tang, Barrister-at-Law, and Dr Pauline Sung, gave a CPD seminar on "Juvenile Offenders, Mental Illness and Criminal Law" at the Hong Kong Academy of Law on 13 March 2024, and the seminar was attended by Mr. Vincent Chong and Dr. Sung. The Hong Kong Academy of Law organised a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) seminar on "Juvenile Offenders, Mental Illness and Criminal Law".) The seminar attracted a large number of members of the legal profession, particularly those practising law who are concerned with juvenile offending and mental health issues.

As a practising solicitor and registered social worker, Mr Chong has an in-depth understanding of youth and mental health. His dual professional background enables him to take a broader perspective in analysing and addressing the needs of young and mentally challenged defendants when handling related cases.

The seminar explored the jurisdiction and procedures of the juvenile court, sentencing considerations and sentencing considerations for juvenile offenders. In addition, Mr Chong mentioned that mental illness may constitute a defence, especially when the defence disputes whether the defendant has the mens rea, and explained how the defendant's mental condition can be presented to the court as a plea for mercy. He also reminded the audience of the details for solicitors to consider when engaging a psychiatrist or psychologist to prepare an expert report.

Mr Chong combines legal knowledge with a background in social work to provide comprehensive legal services to juvenile defendants, and has defended juvenile defendants in court on numerous occasions. Mr Chong understands that juvenile defendants often have complex social and psychological issues behind them. Therefore, he strives to build up trust with the juveniles in the course of his defence, and to understand their family background and mental health, etc., so as to combine them with appropriate defence strategies to obtain the most favourable outcome for the juvenile defendants.

Mr Chong will continue to explore issues related to criminal law for young offenders and mental health, and to support the underprivileged in the community as both a lawyer and a social worker.