Wearing black, the lawyers and their supporters gathered for the march from the Court of Final Appeal to Justice Place, just hours after police fired tear gas late on Tuesday to disperse protesters in Sham Shui Po, one of the city's poorest districts.

"We are here to protect the rule of law," Hong Kong legislator Martin Lee declared following the march.

"The rule of law means, most importantly, that we are all equal under the law," Lee added, as he denounced the government for failing to go after people who carried out violent attacks against peaceful protesters.

Hong Kong's lawyers fear the Department of Justice's prosecutions of arrested protesters is taking on an increasingly political slant after 44 people were charged with rioting, an offence which carries a 10-year jail term.