Gladys Veronica Li, QC, SC (; born 1948), is a Barrister in England, a Senior Counsel at the Hong Kong Bar with a constitutional law and human rights practice, and a founding member of the Hong Kong

Civic Party The Civic Party (CP) is a pro-democracy liberal political party in Hong Kong. It is currently chaired by barrister Alan Leong. The party was formed in 2006 on the basis of the Basic Law Article 45 Concern Group, which was derived from the ...

Career

Li began to take an interest in public affairs on her return to

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

in 1982, after 10 years' practice as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and givin ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. She became a member of the

lobby group In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

which sought to inform British MPs in the late 1980s about lack of

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose g ...

, absence of human rights protections and the importance of the rule of law in Hong Kong. She was Chairman of the

Hong Kong Bar Association The Hong Kong Bar Association (HKBA) is the professional regulatory body for barristers in Hong Kong. The Law Society of Hong Kong is the equivalent association for solicitors in Hong Kong. Victor Dawes SC is the current chairman of the Cou ...

in 1995 and 1996. Ms Li has also been a member of the Article 23 Concern Group and the

Article 45 Concern Group Basic Law Article 45 Concern Group is a pro-democracy political group in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (HKSAR) . It was established on 14 November 2003 by legal practitioners and academics. It had ...

. In 2011 she successfully represented

Filipina Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or other ...

domestic helper Evangeline Banao Vallejos in ''

Vallejos v. Commissioner of Registration ''Vallejos and Domingo v. Commissioner of Registration'' was a court case against the government of Hong Kong by two foreign domestic helpers (FDHs) seeking permanent residence and the right of abode in Hong Kong. Because of its subject matter i ...

''. Vallejos was seeking

permanent residency Permanent residency is a person's legal resident status in a country or territory of which such person is not a citizen but where they have the right to reside on a permanent basis. This is usually for a permanent period; a person with suc ...

after working in Hong Kong for 25 years, in a contentious challenge to the Immigration Ordinance that stirred public discussion of

human rights in Hong Kong Human rights protection is enshrined in the Basic Law and its Bill of Rights Ordinance (Cap.383). By virtue of the Bill of Rights Ordinance and Basic Law Article 39, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is put in ...

and vilification for Li.Whose side is Civic Party on, Liberals ask
, ''

South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...

'', Tanna Chong, 11 Aug 2011 However, the CFI's decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal in 2012 and Vallejos's appeal was dismissed by the Court of Final Appeal in 2013.

Family

Li's parents are mother Marie Veronica Lillian Yang and father is Simon Li Fook-sean, a former senior judge who is part of the Li family that owns the

Bank of East Asia The Bank of East Asia Limited, often abbreviated to BEA, is a Hong Kong banking and financial services company, headquartered in Central, Hong Kong. It is currently the largest independent local Hong Kong bank, and one of two remaining family ...

and who stood as a candidate for Hong Kong Chief Executive in the first CE election in 1996.

References

Living people 1948 births Barristers of Hong Kong Hong Kong Senior Counsel Civic Party politicians Hong Kong women lawyers Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2007–2012 Li family of Hong Kong 21st-century Hong Kong women politicians {{UK-law-bio-stub