- LGBTQ+ parents navigating Hong Kong’s complex adoption processes
- Interracial families and their newly found togetherness
- Adoption champions who’ve weathered the system
- Parents who shattered societal expectations
A continued commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
Hugill & Ip continues to enhance its strong commitment to diversity and inclusion within the legal profession and Hong Kong society. The firm actively promotes equal opportunities and has been recognized for its progressive workplace policies. The firm’s involvement in family law, LGBTQ+ rights, and social justice is evident through their solicitors’ casework and community engagement.
The firm has handled notable adoption and family matters, including cases involving same-sex couples adoption (B v. B & another [2024] HKCFI 3356) and children’s rights issues and cross-border parenting disputes, aligning with Hong Kong’s evolving social and legal landscape. Their lawyers, including Alfred Ip, Caroline McNally and Raphael Wong, have contributed to discussions on inclusive family law through media interviews and legal commentary.
Hugill & Ip supports pro-bono work and professional development programs, fostering an inclusive environment for both employees and clients. Their broader efforts in advancing equitable legal representation reflect their commitment to social progress.
Beyond legal theory: humanizing Adoption Law
While Hugill & Ip continues its adoption advocacy and legal work, Raphael’s interview series adds a powerful human dimension to the firm’s support.
“These stories are much more than case studies — they’re living testimony to why our laws must evolve,” explains Raphael Wong, whose family law practice frequently handles complex adoption cases. “When you hear a lesbian mother describe having to choose which partner would be the legal parent, or an adoptee from another jurisdiction share their search for biological roots, abstract legal barriers become viscerally real.”
Featured Stories Breaking Stereotypes
1️. The Two-Mom Puzzle
A lesbian couple shares their odyssey through Hong Kong’s adoption system — including the heartbreaking moment they realized only one could legally adopt their daughter and the trials they endured during the adoption process.
2️. From the USA to Hong Kong
A father speaking about his journey of adopting his child in the USA and bring him back to Hong Kong.
3️. Adoption as a choice for a new life
An expatriate couple and their double adoption story in Hong Kong.
Why This Matters Now
With Hong Kong’s adoption rates drop and LGBTQ+ couples’ ability to jointly apply for adoption remaining unclear, Hugill & Ip’s initiative arrives at a critical juncture. The firm’s multipronged approach strives to participate to a new unprecedented momentum for change.
“We hope these interviews will contribute to change how many people still see adoptive families,” highlights Raphael Wong.” When two mothers describe their long battle to adopt their daughter, or when a father explain how he had to face immigration issues when relocating his child back to Hong Kong, society is forced to confront an undeniable truth: love makes a family – not bureaucracy, not biology, and certainly not outdated prejudices.”
