The Hong Kong government signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law to establish a regional liaison office for the Asia-Pacific region in Hong Kong.

On March 12, the Secretary for Justice of Hong Kong, Teresa Cheng, and the Secretary-General of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT), Professor Ignacio Tirado, signed a memorandum of administrative arrangements for the establishment of the Asia-Pacific Regional Liaison Office in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (Hong Kong SAR) at an online signing ceremony. The decision to establish the Asia-Pacific Regional Liaison Office in Hong Kong SAR was made at the 85th session of the UNIDROIT General Assembly in December 2025, marking the first time in the one hundred-year history of UNIDROIT that a regional office has been established outside of its headquarters in Rome. In her remarks at the ceremony, Teresa Cheng stated that Hong Kong SAR, as an international legal hub with a robust common law system, is an ideal location for UNIDROIT to establish its first regional office. The signing of the memorandum is an important step towards the establishment of the liaison office in Hong Kong, signaling the progress of related work. She expressed gratitude for UNIDROIT's trust and support for Hong Kong SAR and the Department of Justice, and mentioned that the liaison office is expected to open in November this year. During the Hong Kong Legal Week 2026, the Department of Justice will host the Asia-Pacific International Private Law Summit and Centennial Regional Events with UNIDROIT, further solidifying their close cooperation. UNIDROIT is an independent intergovernmental organization headquartered in Rome, with 65 member countries from five continents. The organization aims to study the modernization, harmonization, and unification of private law in commercial matters among countries and groups of countries, and to develop uniform legal documents, principles, and rules to achieve these objectives.