The common law in operation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region: the Hong Kong story
Since 1841, the common law system has been Hong Kong’s legal system. Some regard it as quite remarkable that such a system, with its roots in mediaeval England, Edward the Confessor and Magna Carta, should apply in a small region in the Far East. It is, however, even more astonishing to learn that this system, since 1997, still prevails in this most modern and financial of cities. Many interesting questions arise. Why was this system regarded as appropriate for Hong Kong when the rest of the country operates under a quite different system of law? And what are the characteristics of the common law system in Hong Kong? Is it largely the same system as exists in Australia, England and other established common law jurisdictions, or is Hong Kong different? The speaker will, in the course of addressing these matters, focus on the fundamentals of the common law, for it is always the fundamentals that will define the true nature and efficacy of any legal system.
The Honourable Chief Justice Geoffrey MA Tao-li, GBM
Chief Justice Ma was appointed Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal on 1 September 2010.
Chief Justice Ma was born in Hong Kong in 1956. He studied law and graduated with an LLB from Birmingham University in 1977. After completing the Bar Finals in 1978, he was called to the English Bar (Gray’s Inn) in 1978, the Hong Kong Bar in 1980, the Bar of the State of Victoria in Australia in 1983 and the Bar of Singapore in 1990. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1993. He became an Honorary Bencher of Gray’s Inn in 2004. In 2011, he was admitted to the degree of Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) by the University of Birmingham. In 2012, he became an Honorary Fellow of Harris Manchester College, Oxford. In 2016, he became an Honorary Bencher of the Middle Temple and was admitted to the degree of Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) by the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Chief Justice Ma was appointed a Recorder of the Court of First Instance from 2000 to 2001 before his appointment as a Judge of the Court of First Instance in 2001. He was appointed a Justice of Appeal in 2002, and became Chief Judge of the High Court in 2003. Before joining the Judiciary, Chief Justice Ma was in private practice in Hong Kong and in Singapore.
Chief Justice Ma is a Patron of the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law; he is also a Patron of the International Advocacy Training Council.
Chief Justice Ma was awarded the Grand Bauhinia Medal in June 2012.
“The common law in operation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region: the Hong Kong story” presented by the Honourable Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma, Chief Justice of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal.
23 May 2018 Melbourne Law School.