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The rule of law, Hong Kong & reality

02 August 2024 / Dr Ping-fat Sze
Issue: 8082 / Categories: Features , Profession , International , International justice
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It’s time to refocus attention on the administration of criminal justice in this former British colony. Dr Ping-fat Sze explains why
  • Comments on shortcomings in the prosecutorial system in Hong Kong, including the Department of Justice’s lack of oversight of prosecutions by police and public authorities.

The resignation of three visiting judges from the final appeal court of Hong Kong, shortly after the organisers of the 2020 pro-democracy primaries were convicted by the first instance court on 30 May 2024, have sent shock waves through the common law world.

One of the quitting judges, Lord Sumption, raised his concerns in the Financial Times (‘The rule of law in Hong Kong is in grave danger’, 10 June 2024) only to be met with condemnation in the strongest possible terms by the Foreign Ministry in Beijing, and in turn, by the chief executive, the chief justice, the chief secretary, the justice secretary, the deputy justice secretary and the security chief of Hong Kong in the following week.

In

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Hugh James—Phil Edwards

Hugh James—Phil Edwards

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Freeths—Melanie Stancliffe

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Lawyers’ liability practice strengthened with partner appointment in London

NEWS
Ceri Morgan, knowledge counsel at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP, analyses the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Johnson v FirstRand Bank Ltd, which reshapes the law of fiduciary relationships and common law bribery
The boundaries of media access in family law are scrutinised by Nicholas Dobson in NLJ this week
Reflecting on personal experience, Professor Graham Zellick KC, Senior Master of the Bench and former Reader of the Middle Temple, questions the unchecked power of parliamentary privilege
A highly unusual nuisance case is explored by James Naylor, partner at Naylor Solicitors, in NLJ this week
Tech companies will be legally required to prevent material that encourages or assists serious self-harm appearing on their platforms, under Online Safety Act 2023 regulations due to come into force in the autumn
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