Alongside death and taxes, there are few things more universally certain than corruption in public procurement. That is a reality worth keeping front of mind in Hong Kong as we home in on those we want to blame for the tragic Wang Fuk Court fire that in November killed at least 161 people and left…
People who passed by Hong Kong’s Christmas Town attraction at Statue Square Gardens in Central over the past month or so may have noticed that one of the buildings onto which cascading festive animations were projected was slightly more historic than the others. That building, which is a declared monument, houses the Court of Final…
Hong Kong should make bid-rigging a crime in the wake of the city’s deadliest fire in decades, a local think tank has urged, echoing a similar call from the city’s barristers. The proposal by the POD Research Institute came after the Hong Kong Bar Association formed a task force to review existing legislation following the…
Jose-Antonio Maurellet is set to serve for another term as chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association, with the current vice-chairpersons also to return. Senior Counsel Maurellet on Friday confirmed a circular stating that he had been nominated as chairman for the 2026-27 term. Martin Hui Siu-ting and Eva Sit Yat-wah, both senior counsel, would…
To many, senior counsel appear to be an oddity of an antiquated system, reinforced visually by men and women dressed in funny wigs and medieval garb marching in an official procession together with all the judges at the Opening of the Legal Year in January each year. There are only 104 of them in Hong…
“Justice is open to all – like the Ritz” is a quote often attributed to Sir James Mathew, a 19th-century Irish judge. This is another way of saying that while in theory justice and the courts are open to everyone, in practice only those who can afford to pay the hefty fees can get their…
The Hong Kong Bar Association has proposed introducing targeted legislation to criminalise bid-rigging and make key construction safety guidelines legally binding, following the city’s deadliest fire in seven decades. The association formed a task force to review existing legislation after the Tai Po fire last month, with one of the preliminary goals being to criminalise…
I grew up in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district and Wang Fuk Court was a stone’s throw away from my school. In the recent fire, 16 students and one staff member of my alma mater were affected. Fortunately, there were no casualties among them, but homes were destroyed and their loss was profoundly felt. The…
An open court and a detailed ruling in former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s closely watched national security trial have demonstrated the strength of Hong Kong’s rule of law, legal experts have said. Lawyers, including the Hong Kong Bar Association, on Tuesday urged members of the public to respect the city’s judicial process and study…
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on Hong Kong’s leader to proactively align with the 15th five-year plan, while offering his full recognition of the local government’s work as he extended condolences to the families of victims of the city’s deadliest fire in decades. Xi also said on Tuesday that Beijing fully recognised the work…