Building Cross-Border Access to Justice for Hong Kong’s Migrant Workers

This document provides a brief overview of JWB’s experience to date in developing cross- border access to civil justice for migrant workers returning home from Hong Kong. This document may be helpful to frontline community service organizations and lawyers helping workers who cannot stay in Hong Kong to pursue their claims. Increased claims are possible in the wake of Covid-19, with migrant workers especially vulnerable to downsizing, abuse, and exploitation. 

Through JWB’s ongoing casework, we have seen varying levels of receptiveness towards cross-border migrant worker cases across Hong Kong’s judicial and administrative systems. With the support of our pro bono partners, JWB has continuously innovated procedures that would enable migrant workers to pursue legal claims in Hong Kong, even after they have returned home.