On 15 October 2026, our Partner Mathew Liu conducted an online specialized legal seminar for members of The Hong Kong Occupational Therapy Association (HKOTA), titled ‘Reducing Documentation Risk: Legally Appropriate Clinical Records’.

Attended by over 250 members of the sector, the seminar equipped occupational therapists with practical strategies for maintaining legally sound clinical documentation, particularly as primary care healthcare models place greater demands on front-line record-keeping. The session focused on bridging the gap between clinical duties and risk management to safeguard both patient interests and practitioner reputation.

Significance of Clinical Records

Maintaining comprehensive clinical records in high-pressure practice environments is rarely straightforward. Practitioners must continually navigate complex parameters around adequacy, contemporaneousness, informed consent, and data privacy.

In our extensive regulatory and dispute resolution experience, clear and contemporaneous records are often the decisive factor in:

• Resolving professional negligence disputes at an early stage;
• Securing the dismissal of professional misconduct complaints during Preliminary Inquiry Committee (PIC) stages; and
• Defending practitioners when clinical records are subjected to intense scrutiny during substantive disciplinary inquiries or civil court proceedings.

Cross-Discipline Legal Training & Capability

While healthcare presents distinct challenges, professionals across all disciplines face heightened regulatory oversight, public scrutiny, and potential complaints. Statutory codes of conduct offer baseline principles, but practitioners frequently struggle to translate these guidelines into daily practice under real-world constraints.

SFKS regularly designs and delivers tailored legal training for professional bodies, corporate entities, and regulatory institutions. The core legal principles governing professional practice, such as fiduciary obligations, duty of care, confidentiality, conflict management, and patient/client relations, apply across all sectors. In 2025 and 2026, Mathew Liu provided substantive legal training for occupational therapists, accountants, labour officers, journalists and teachers.

SFKS advises in regulatory body investigations and disciplinary proceedings, where legal interests, factual conflicts and reputational risks are all at stake. SFKS also advises complainants and claimants of professional negligence and misconduct disputes.

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