I am interested in access to justice, litigants in person, civil procedure and financial regulation. With my thesis, I hope to examine the conditions of access to civil courts in Hong Kong for persons who represent themselves. The civil litigation system is designed for use by private lawyers, and thus assistance takes two forms: for those eligible, full legal advice and representation is provided; and for those who are not, resources are provided so lay persons step into the shoes of a representing lawyer on their own behalves. The central contention of my proposed thesis is this normative approach to assistance is too narrow, and does not take into account the needs of civil litigants in person engaged in different types of litigation. Existing resources might be more effectively deployed so that more sustainable outcomes for civil LiPs might be secured.