On March 20, the pairing meeting of legal volunteers from the grassroots chambers of commerce in Putuo District was held at the District Government, marking the official establishment of the first legal volunteer service team of the District Federation of Industry and Commerce's grassroots chambers of commerce. Guo Fang, Member of the Standing Committee of the District Committee, Vice Chairman of the District Political Consultative Conference, and Minister of the United Front Work Department, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Leaders in charge from various sub-districts and towns, presidents and secretaries-general of grassroots chambers of commerce, and heads of 11 law firms within the district participated in the meeting.
The meeting was presided over by Xu Zhiping, Deputy Minister of the United Front Work Department of the District Committee and Secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the District Federation of Industry and Commerce.
During the meeting, Liu Guliang, Director of the District Bureau of Justice, read out the "Rules for Legal Volunteer Services of Grassroots Chambers of Commerce in Putuo District." Weng Zhigang, Vice Chairman of the District Federation of Industry and Commerce, President of the Zhenru Town Chamber of Commerce, and General Manager of Shanghai Dongfang Daily Chemical Sales Co., Ltd., and Wu Jun, Managing Partner of Shanghai Wanlian Law Firm, delivered speeches on behalf of the grassroots chambers of commerce and lawyer volunteers, respectively. A ceremony for issuing letters of appointment to legal volunteers of the chambers of commerce was also held on site.
Guo Fang emphasized that there are over 20,000 enterprises in Putuo District, providing broad space for offering legal volunteer services to businesses. She required the District Federation of Industry and Commerce and chamber of commerce organizations to leverage their organizational advantages, promote the "service" brand of Putuo, and, through platforms and bridging roles, genuinely benefit enterprises. At the same time, she urged lawyer volunteers to establish a correct perspective on gains and losses, stating that "gold cups and silver cups are not as good as a good reputation." She expressed hope that law firms would achieve a "win-win" situation through volunteer activities and play a role in the District Federation of Industry and Commerce's efforts to center on the core tasks and serve the overall situation. She also called on the Party (work) committees of various sub-districts, towns, and industrial parks to provide care and attention to the initiation of the activities and create conditions to facilitate volunteer services.
Establishing a legal volunteer team for grassroots chambers of commerce and launching lawyer volunteer initiatives represent an important measure by the District Federation of Industry and Commerce and the District Bureau of Justice to strengthen departmental collaboration, jointly serve the economy, serve the grassroots, and serve enterprises. It is a significant manifestation of supporting the development of small and medium-sized enterprises and promoting regional economic and social progress. It is also a concrete practice in deepening the Party's mass line education实践活动. The grassroots chamber of commerce legal volunteer team will uphold the volunteer spirit, operate on a voluntary basis, and provide high-quality, comprehensive legal services to chambers of commerce and their member enterprises, including conducting regular or ad hoc legal publicity, legal consultations, and legal aid at grassroots chambers of commerce; carrying out activities such as "law into industrial parks" and "law into enterprises" through consultation; conducting legal awareness campaigns; and offering legal services to chamber member enterprises, particularly micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. The establishment of the grassroots chamber of commerce legal volunteer team has received mutual support and welcome from both grassroots chambers of commerce and law firms.