Hong Kong Judiciary Annual Report 2018

	In 2018, we continued to try to make improvements on our judicial system. Hong Kong has an independent Judiciary which is on the whole much respected, but where improvements can be made to make the administration of justice more effective, we will try to achieve this as much as possible.

	The Judiciary continued to face heavy workloads. Since mid-2018, the Judiciary has launched a new round of open recruitment exercises for Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court and District Judges with a view to filling judicial vacancies. However, standards must remain high.

	The year saw the passage and commencement of the legislative amendments for increasing the civil jurisdictional limits of the District Court and the Small Claims Tribunal. These amendments enable better distribution of cases among the courts and the tribunal concerned, and enhance access to justice.

	The Integrated Mediation Office also came into operation during the year. This Office combines the resources of the previous mediation offices and provides a one-stop point for litigants to access information on mediation, thereby facilitating parties to resolve their disputes.

	I wish to take this opportunity to thank members of the community, the Government and the Legislative Council for their invaluable support for the work of the Judiciary. I also thank our judges and staff for their dedication to the administration of justice.

	This Report provides an overview of the major events of the Judiciary in 2018. We hope that you will find it useful and gain a better understanding of the work of the Judiciary.

	Geoffrey Ma Chief Justice

Review of 2018

	Following tradition, the year began with the Ceremonial Opening of the Legal Year on 8 January. The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA spoke about the common law system being in place in Hong Kong for nearly 180 years as vital to the continuing success of Hong Kong. The use of case law, which is one of the features of the common law, relies fundamentally on the courts providing reasoned judgments for cases. In Hong Kong, the independent Judiciary exercises judicial power under the Basic Law to apply the law and determine legal disputes. The enforcement of law carries with it the power of imposing legal sanctions. With such responsibilities on the Judiciary, the Hong Kong’s common law system is underpinned by its transparency, enabling members of the public to observe court proceedings and gain access to court judgments. Its significance lies in helping the community scrutinize every judgment of the courts and see for themselves that the judgments of the courts are arrived at only by applying the law, without any outside, non-legal factors being taken into account. He also spoke about the importance of making comments about the work of the Judiciary on an informed basis as any unwarranted criticisms made against the rule of law cannot be of any benefit to the community.

	The Chief Justice also stressed the total commitment of the Judiciary in Hong Kong to serve the community as best as it possibly can.

	Appointment of Judges and Judicial Officers
	Various judicial appointments were made in the year 2018. Among these were the appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG as a Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal; the appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG as a Non-Permanent Hong Kong Judge of the Court of Final Appeal; the appointments of the Right Hon the Baroness HALE of Richmond and the Right Hon Beverley McLACHLIN as Non-Permanent Judges from other common law jurisdictions of the Court of Final Appeal; the appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Andrew MACRAE as a Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court; the appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Kevin ZERVOS as a Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court; and the appointment of Mr Simon KWANG as Registrar of the High Court.

	Caseload
	In 2018, the Judiciary continued to face heavy work pressures at all levels of court. While many performance targets were achieved, a number of targets at various levels of courts were not met. To address this challenge, the Judiciary has launched a new round of recruitment exercises for Judges and Judicial Officers (“JJOs”) at the High Court, District Court (“DC”) and Magistrates’ Courts starting from mid-2018 by phases, with a view to tackling the shortfall in judicial manpower which is one of the main factors affecting the court waiting times. Pending the substantive filling of judicial vacancies through open recruitment, the Judiciary continued to make use of temporary judicial resources to help maintain judicial manpower required at different levels of court. The Judiciary also continued to take forward the legislative amendment exercise for extending the statutory retirement ages for JJOs. This will strengthen the Judiciary by attracting more persons of the highest calibre to join the Bench as well as retaining experienced JJOs. During the year, the legislative amendments for increasing the civil jurisdictional limits of the DC and the Small Claims Tribunal (“SCT”) were passed and commenced operation, which enabled the DC to handle cases of higher claim amounts, thereby reducing the pressure particularly on the Court of First Instance and enhancing access to the judicial system for the public. The Judiciary will continue to closely monitor the waiting times for court cases.

	Court security
	The Judiciary has all along attached great importance to court security and has kept security measures under regular review to ensure the safety of JJOs, Judiciary staff, court users and the public. Subsequent to the introduction of security screening in the Family Court in November 2017, security screening has also been implemented in the High Court Building on court floors at LG/4F, and from 1/F to 14/F since January 2018. The Judiciary has also increased liaison with the Police to deploy additional police officers at the High Court, the DC and the Family Court. The Judiciary will continue to monitor the situation and introduce further measures to enhance the security of court premises where practical having regard to operational needs and user convenience.

	Integrated Mediation Office
	In May 2018, the Judiciary merged the Mediation Information Office and the Family Mediation Co-ordinator’s Office to form the Integrated Mediation Office (“IMO”) to combine the functions of the previous mediation offices and facilitate settlement of disputes by way of mediation. Located at Wanchai Tower, the IMO provides a one-stop point for litigants to access a collection of reference materials on mediation. It accommodates a seminar room and interview rooms where mediation information sessions and pre-mediation consultations in appropriate cases are held, and videos on mediation are shown for educational purposes. The Building Management Mediation Co-ordinator’s Office located separately at the Lands Tribunal continues to provide information about building management mediation.

	Boards and Committees
	The Chief Justice appointed JJOs and invited representatives from the legal profession and relevant government departments to sit on a number of boards and committees to provide their input to issues that are important to the operation of the Judiciary. These boards and committees include the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee, Working Party on Mediation, Admiralty Court Users’ Committee, Civil Court Users’ Committee, Criminal Court Users’ Committee, Family Proceedings Court Users’ Committee, Competition Tribunal Users’ Committee, Sub-Committee on Companies and Insolvency Matters of the Civil Court Users’ Committee and the Governing Body of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute.

	Exchanges with other Jurisdictions
	In 2018, our JJOs continued exchanges with their counterparts in other jurisdictions. In May, the Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech in the 2018 Oration of the Supreme Court of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, and gave lectures at the University of Melbourne and the University of New South Wales. In September, he led a delegation to visit various courts in Zhejiang Province and attended the second meeting of the Standing International Forum of Commercial Courts in New York, the United States. The Hon Madam Justice AU-YEUNG and the Hon Madam Justice CHU, Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, also attended the meeting of the Working Group on the draft Guide to Good Practice on Article 13(1)(b) of the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention held in The Hague, Netherlands in September.

	Visits and Visitors to the Judiciary
	In 2018, the Judiciary arranged 339 visits for about 9600 visitors. Among all, most visitors are local students. We greatly value all opportunities to meet with visitors and introduce to them the work of the Judiciary.

	You are cordially invited to visit our Photo Gallery for various memorable moments of the Judiciary in 2018.

Highlights of Events in 2018

January

1	Ms TAM Wan-chi, Winnie, SC; Mr WONG Kai-ming, Stewart, SC; and Ms CHAN Ching-fan, Linda, SC were re-appointed Recorders of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
2	Mr LEE Hing-nin, Clement was appointed District Judge
4	A seven-member delegation from the Busan American Law Study Association of Korea visited the Judiciary
8	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA declared opening of the 2018 Legal Year
8	A group of 42 delegation heads of representatives of legal professions from the Mainland and overseas attending the 2018 Legal Year Opening visited the Court of Final Appeal
17	An eight-member delegation led by Mr LIU Zheng, Deputy Director of the Judges Management Division of the Human Resources Department of the Supreme People’s Court, visited the Judiciary
23	A 17-member delegation from the Korean Association of Law Schools visited the Judiciary

February

1	Mr FUNG Ting-sek, Eugene, SC; Mr Charles Peter MANZONI, SC; and Ms CHENG Wai-sum, Yvonne, SC were appointed Recorders of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
22-23	The Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG Ching, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, delivered a speech at Dr Mok Hing Yiu Lecture 2018 at the St Hugh’s College, University of Oxford and a talk at the University College London

March

1	The terms of office of the Hon Mr Justice Murray GLEESON, the Rt Hon the Lord NEUBERGER of Abbotsbury and the Rt Hon the Lord WALKER of Gestingthorpe, Non-Permanent Judges from other common law jurisdictions of the Court of Final Appeal, were extended for a period of three years
8-9	A seven-member delegation led by Ms Juthika RAMANATHAN, Chief Executive, Judiciary Administration and Operations of the Supreme Court of Singapore, visited the Judiciary
10	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the 16th Red Cross International Humanitarian Law Moot
13	Ms Camilla GODMAN, Regional Director for the Far East and Australasia of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, visited the Judiciary
15	A two-member delegation led by Mr James SOUTH, Managing Director of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, visited the Judiciary
19	Mr LU Weidong, Director of the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Justice, visited the Judiciary
20	The Rt Hon Lord Robert REED, Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, delivered a talk entitled “Back to Basics? Recent Developments in the UK Supreme Court” at the High Court
23	A 24-member student delegation from De Montfort University Leicester of England visited the Judiciary

April

12	The Hon Sir David FOSKETT, Judge of the High Court of England and Wales, delivered a talk entitled “Dispute resolution in the 21st century” at the High Court of Hong Kong
18	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Opening of the Conference “The HCCH 125 – Ways Forward: Challenges and Opportunities in an Increasingly Connected World” organised by the Hague Conference on Private International Law
23	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew C MACRAE, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, was appointed Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
25	A group of participants of the “TargetLaw” Programme organised by law students of various local and overseas universities visited the Judiciary
27	Mr QIAO Xiaoyang, Chairman of the Law Committee of the 12th National People’s Congress, visited the Judiciary

May

8	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech entitled “The Past 21 Years of the Common Law in Hong Kong: From Strength to Strength” at the invitation of the Hong Kong Chapter of the International Law Section of the Law Council of Australia
21-25	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech entitled “Criticism of the courts and judges: informed criticism and otherwise” in the 2018 Oration of the Supreme Court of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia and gave lectures at the University of Melbourne and the University of New South Wales. The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG, Chief Judge of the High Court, delivered talks at the above two universities as well as the University of Queensland
21	A 25-member delegation of Mainland judges attending the Master of Laws Programme of the City University of Hong Kong visited the Judiciary

June

2	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Hong Kong Bar Association Debating Competition 2018
4	A group of 18 Mainland judges attending the 12th Advanced Programme for Chinese Senior Judges of the City University of Hong Kong visited the Judiciary
7	An eight-member delegation from the Justice Departments/Bureaux of the Mainland visited the Judiciary
9	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA presided over the 2018 Senior Counsel Admission Ceremony
25	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the 5th Annual Conference of the International Society of Public Law (ICON-S) and delivered an opening address. The Hon Chief Justice MA also attended the 50th Anniversary Kick-off Ceremony of the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong and delivered an address

July

11-13	The Hon Mr Justice Thomas AU and the Hon Mr Justice Anderson CHOW, Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended Public Law Conference 2018 in Melbourne, Australia
13	A group of 33 students participating in the Summer Exchange Programme co-organised by New Asia College of the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Hunan University visited the Judiciary
16	A 19-member student delegation from the Law Schools of Peking University and Renmin University visited the Judiciary
26	A 15-member delegation from the Provincial Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council visited the Judiciary
26	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Law Reform Commission Dinner and Essay Competition Award Ceremony 2018
27	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Annual General Meeting of Scout Association of Hong Kong
28	The term of office of the Rt Hon the Lord MILLETT, Non-Permanent Judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal, was extended for a period of three years
30	A 10-member delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs visited the Judiciary
30	The Rt Hon the Baroness Brenda HALE of Richmond and the Rt Hon Beverley McLACHLIN were appointed Non-Permanent Judges from other common law jurisdictions of the Court of Final Appeal
30	The Hon Mr Justice Kevin Paul ZERVOS was appointed Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court

August

9	A delegation of judges from the Lahore High Court of Pakistan visited the Judiciary
9-10	A delegation comprising judges from the District Courts of the United States visited the Judiciary
10	Dr Michael HWANG, Chief Justice of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Courts and Mrs Amna AL OWAIS, Chief Executive & Registrar of the DIFC Courts, visited the Judiciary
29	A four-member delegation led by Mr Justice BIRSS, Judge of the High Court of England and Wales of the United Kingdom, visited the Judiciary

September

10	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon was appointed Registrar of the High Court
12-14	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA led a delegation to visit various courts in Zhejiang Province at the invitation of the Supreme People’s Court
12-15	The Hon Mr Justice R A V RIBEIRO, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, attended the Global Constitutionalism Seminar 2018 held at the Yale Law School in New Haven, Connecticut, the United States
18-21	The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG and the Hon Madam Justice Bebe CHU, Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended the meeting of the Working Group on the draft Guide to Good Practice on Article 13(1)(b) of the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention held in The Hague, the Netherlands
20	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech at the Hong Kong Forum: 60th Anniversary of the New York Convention jointly organised by the Department of Justice, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and the Asian Academy of International Law
21	A four-member delegation from the Judicial Policy Research Institute of Korea visited the Judiciary
21-25	The Hon Mr Justice Jonathan R HARRIS, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended the Judicial Insolvency Network meeting and International Insolvency Institute’s 18th Annual Conference in New York, the United States
21	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA opened the Hong Kong 2018 International Commercial Law Conference organised by the Victorian Bar and the Commercial Bar Association, Australia
21	A 63-member delegation from the Middle Temple, UK, visited the Judiciary; and the Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma and the Hon Mr Justice Aarif T BARMA, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, acted as judges of the Moot held by Middle Temple
27-28	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA and the Hon Madam Justice Mimmie CHAN, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended the second meeting of the Standing International Forum of Commercial Courts in New York, the United States

October

1	The term of office of the Rt Hon the Lord PHILLIPS of Worth Matravers, Non-Permanent Judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal, was extended for a period of three years
9-10	A 13-member delegation led by Ms TAO Kaiyuan, Vice-President of the Supreme People’s Court, visited the Judiciary and participated in seminar organised by the Judiciary
19	The Hon Mr Justice Jonathan R HARRIS, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended the 2nd Market-Orientated Bankruptcy Forum in Shenzhen
19-21	His Honour Judge CHAN Chan-kok, Acting Principal Family Court Judge, attended an academic seminar on family law in Beijing
22	Farewell Sitting in honour of the Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, held in the Court of Final Appeal
23	A 12-member delegation from the Chinese Association of Case Study visited the Judiciary
23-25	Deputy High Court Judge Tony POON, Deputy Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court and Mr SO Wai-tak, Acting Chief Magistrate, attended the Judicial Leadership Program: Heads of Jurisdiction in Melbourne, Australia
24	A group of 16 Mainland judges attending the 13th Advanced Programme for Chinese Senior Judges of the City University of Hong Kong visited the Judiciary
25	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered opening remarks at the 7th Asia Pro Bono Conference in Hong Kong
25	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG was appointed Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal
25	The Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG was appointed Non-Permanent Hong Kong Judge of the Court of Final Appeal for a term of three years
25	The term of office of the Hon Mr Justice S K S BOKHARY, Non-Permanent Hong Kong Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, was extended for a period of three years
28.10-3.11	A six-member delegation led by the Hon Mr Justice Johnson Lam, Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, visited Family Courts and met with Family Judges in Singapore and Melbourne and Sydney, Australia

November

1-2	The Hon Mr Justice Jeremy POON, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, attended the 9th AIJA Appellate Judges’ Conference in Brisbane, Australia
7	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA spoke at the Bapsybanoo Marchioness of Winchester Lecture 2018 on "The Dependency of Business and Finance on the Common Law in Hong Kong: a Paradigm Jurisdiction" at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom
8	Mr WANG Shengqian, Inspector and Deputy Director-General of the Second Board in General Office of the State Council, visited the Judiciary
13-16	Ms Stephanie TSUI, Magistrate, attended the 2018 Asia Pacific Coroners’ Society Conference in Canberra, Australia
16	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered opening remarks at the Training Course on Private Financial Adjudication organised by the Committee on Family Law of the Hong Kong Bar Association
17	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Opening Ceremony of Law Week and Teen Talk 2018
26	Mr Su Weidong, Vice Director of Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Baoshan District, Shanghai and Mr Zhan Hongyun, Deputy Director of the Court of Arbitration for Labour and Personnel Disputes of Wuhan, visited the Judiciary

December

3	A four-member delegation led by Mr Shen Chunyao, Chairman, Legislative Affairs Commission; and Chairman, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Basic Law Committee, Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, visited the Judiciary
3-7	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew Colin MACRAE, Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, and Master June CHEUNG, Temporary Deputy Registrar of the High Court, visited various law courts in London, the United Kingdom
4	An 11-member delegation from the Ministry of Employment and Labor of Korea visited the Labour Tribunal
5	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the 61th Annual General Meeting of the Society of Rehabilitation and Crime Prevention, Hong Kong
6	A six-member delegation led by Mr HU Yunteng, Grand Justice of the Second Rank of the Supreme People’s Court, visited the Judiciary
9-11	The Hon Mr Justice Jeremy POON, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, attended a Judicial Roundtable organised by the Shanghai University of Political Science and Law and Law Faculty of the University of Hong Kong in Shanghai
12	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the 2018 Law Society Pro Bono and Community Service Award Presentation Ceremony
13	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Ceremony on the Nanjing Massacre National Memorial Day
17	A six-member delegation from the Nanjing Court of Arbitration for Hong Kong and Macao visited the Judiciary

List of Judges and Judicial Officers

Court of Final Appeal

-	Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal
	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA, GBM
-	Permanent Judges of the Court of Final Appeal
	The Hon Mr Justice R A V RIBEIRO
	The Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG, GBM, SBS #
	The Hon Mr Justice Joseph P FOK
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG (w.e.f. 25.10.2018)
-	Non-Permanent Judges of the Court of Final Appeal
	The Hon Mr Justice S K S BOKHARY, GBM
	The Hon Mr Justice Patrick CHAN, GBM
	The Hon Mr Justice Robert TANG, GBM, SBS (w.e.f. 25.10.2018)
	The Hon Mr Justice Frank STOCK, GBS
	The Rt Hon the Lord HOFFMANN, GBS
	The Rt Hon the Lord MILLETT, GBS
	The Hon Mr Justice Murray GLEESON
	The Rt Hon the Lord NEUBERGER of Abbotsbury, GBS
	The Rt Hon the Lord WALKER of Gestingthorpe
	The Rt Hon the Lord COLLINS of Mapesbury
	The Rt Hon the Lord CLARKE of Stone-cum-Ebony
	The Rt Hon the Lord PHILLIPS of Worth Matravers
	The Hon Mr Justice James SPIGELMAN
	The Hon Mr Justice William GUMMOW
	The Hon Mr Justice Robert FRENCH
	The Rt Hon Lord REED
	The Rt Hon the Baroness HALE of Richmond (w.e.f. 30.7.2018)
	The Rt Hon Madam Justice Beverley McLACHLIN (w.e.f. 30.7.2018)
-	Registrar of the Court of Final Appeal
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon (up to 9.9.2018)

#	Retired in 2018

High Court

-	Chief Judge of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG (up to 24.10.2018)
-	Justices of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Wally YEUNG, V-P
	The Hon Mr Justice Johnson LAM, V-P
	The Hon Mr Justice Michael V LUNN, GBS, V-P #
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew C MACRAE, V-P (w.e.f. 23.4.2018)
	The Hon Mr Justice Peter CHEUNG, JA
	The Hon Madam Justice Maria C YUEN, JA
	The Hon Madam Justice Susan KWAN, JA
	The Hon Madam Justice Carlye CHU, JA
	The Hon Mr Justice Aarif T BARMA, JA
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew C MACRAE, JA (up to 22.4.2018)
	The Hon Mr Justice Ian C McWALTERS, JA
	The Hon Mr Justice S C POON, JA
	The Hon Mr Justice Derek PANG, JA
	The Hon Mr Justice Kevin P ZERVOS, JA (w.e.f. 30.7.2018)
-	Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHUNG
	The Hon Mr Justice Barnabas FUNG, GBS
	The Hon Mrs Justice Judianna W L BARNES
	The Hon Madam Justice Maggie POON
	The Hon Mr Justice H C AU
	The Hon Mr Justice Jonathan R HARRIS
	The Hon Mr Justice Mohan T BHARWANEY
	The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG
	The Hon Mr Justice Patrick LI
	The Hon Madam Justice Esther TOH
	The Hon Mr Justice Louis CHAN
	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHAN
	The Hon Madam Justice Mimmie CHAN
	The Hon Mr Justice Anthony CHAN
	The Hon Mr Justice Godfrey LAM
	The Hon Mr Justice Peter NG
	The Hon Mr Justice Kevin P ZERVOS (up to 29.7.2018)
	The Hon Madam Justice Anthea PANG
	The Hon Mr Justice Anderson CHOW
	The Hon Madam Justice B. CHU
	The Hon Mr Justice David LOK
	The Hon Mr Justice Joseph YAU
	The Hon Mr Justice Albert WONG
	The Hon Mrs Justice Audrey P CAMPBELL-MOFFAT
	The Hon Madam Justice Susana M D'ALMADA REMEDIOS
	The Hon Mr Justice Wilson CHAN
	The Hon Madam Justice K Y WONG
-	Recorders of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	Mr POW Wing-nin, Jason, SC
	Mr COLEMAN Russell Adam, SC
	Mr HOUGHTON Anthony Kenneth, SC
	Ms TAM Wan-chi, Winnie, SC
	Mr WONG Kai-ming, Stewart, SC
	Ms CHAN Ching-fan, Linda, SC
	Mr WHITEHEAD Robert John, SC (up to 29.4.2018)
	Mr FUNG Ting-sek, Eugene, SC (w.e.f. 1.2.2018)
	Mr MANZONI Charles Peter, SC (w.e.f. 1.2.2018)
	Ms CHENG Wai-sum, Yvonne, SC (w.e.f. 1.2.2018)
-	Registrar, High Court
	Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS #
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
-	Senior Deputy Registrars, High Court
	Mr HO Chi-yin, Andy
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon (up to 9.9.2018)

#	Retired in 2018

District Court

-	Chief District Judge
	His Honour Judge S T POON
-	District Judges
	Her Honour Judge Marlene NG
	His Honour Judge Michael WONG
	His Honour Judge Stanley CHAN
	His Honour Judge C M LEUNG
	Her Honour Judge Sharon D MELLOY
	His Honour Judge Eddie YIP
	Her Honour Judge Katina LEVY
	His Honour Judge C K CHAN
	His Honour Judge Frankie YIU
	His Honour Judge K W WONG
	His Honour Judge Justin KO
	His Honour Judge Douglas YAU
	His Honour Judge W K KWOK
	His Honour Judge Josiah LAM
	His Honour Judge Anthony KWOK
	His Honour Judge David J DUFTON
	His Honour Judge S M SHAM
	Her Honour Judge Amanda J WOODCOCK
	His Honour Judge K H HUI
	His Honour Judge Jack WONG
	Her Honour Judge Katherine LO
	His Honour Judge Johnny CHAN
	His Honour Judge Gary LAM
	His Honour Judge Andrew LI
	His Honour Judge Herbert AU-YEUNG
	His Honour Judge W T LEE
	His Honour Judge Harold LEONG
	His Honour Judge Kent YEE
	His Honour Judge Roy YU
	His Honour Judge C P PANG
	His Honour Judge Timothy H CASEWELL
	His Honour Judge Simon LO
	His Honour Judge S L TAM
	Her Honour Judge Angela KOT
	His Honour Judge Reuden LAI
	His Honour Judge George OWN
	Her Honour Judge Y F CHAN
	His Honour Judge L W WONG
	His Honour Judge M K LIU
	His Honour Judge Edmond LEE
	Her Honour Judge Winnie TSUI
	His Honour Judge Clement LEE (w.e.f. 2.1.2018)

Lands Tribunal

-	Members, Lands Tribunal
	Mr PANG Ho-chuen, Lawrence
	Mr NG Siu-lam, Alex

Magistrates' Courts and other Tribunals

-	Chief Magistrate
	Mr LEE Hing-nin, Clement (up to 1.1.2018)
-	Principal Magistrates
	Mr LIN Kam-hung, Ernest Michael
	Mr CHOW Siu-wo, Anthony
	Mr TAM Lee-cheung
	Ms CHAINRAI Bina
	Mr LAW Tak-chuen, Peter
	Ms WOO Huey-fang, Bernadette
	Mr LUI Kin-man, Simon
	Mr HO Chin-pang, Dick
	Mr SO Wai-tak
-	Magistrates
	Ms CHOW Yin-chu, Merinda #
	Mrs TSE CHING Adriana Noelle
	Miss YIM Shun-yee, Ada
	Mr MAK Kwok-cheung
	Mr TO Ho-shing
	Mr CHEANG Kei-hong
	Mr SO Man-lung, Don
	Mr WONG Kwok-fai, Raymond
	Ms CHAN Wai-mun
	Miss CHOW Pok-fun, Josephine
	Mr PANG Ka-kwong
	Mr YIP Sue-pui, Lawrence
	Mr WAN Siu-ming, Jason
	Miss CHUI Yee-mei, Ivy
	Mr LI Chi-ho
	Ms WONG Susan
	Ms LAU Yee-wan, Winnie
	Mr TANG Siu-hung, Daniel
	Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai, David
	Mr CHENG Lim-chi
	Ms LAM Mei-sze, Michelle
	Mr CHUM Yau-fong, David
	Mr SHUM Kei-leong, Timon
	Mr KO Wai-hung
	Miss HO Wai-yang
	Ms CHEUNG Kit-yee
	Ms CHEUNG Tin-ngan, June
	Ms WONG Sze-lai
	Miss NG Chung-yee, Debbie
	Ms HEUNG Shuk-han, Veronica
	Mr CHU Chung-keung *
	Ms TO Kit-ling, Doris
	Ms SHUI Kelly
	Ms CHENG Kam-lin, Catherine
	Mr CHAN Ping-chau, Kenneth
	Mr LEE Siu-ho
	Mr CHOW Chi-wei, Raymund
	Ms CHU Yuen-yee
	Mr CHAN David
	Ms WONG Nga-yan, Peony
	Mr WONG Sze-cheung, Colin
	Ms SO Ka-yin, Rita
	Miss LEE Kar-lok, Jacqueline
	Mr HO Chun-yiu
	Ms SOONG Wing-sum
	Ms LEUNG Ka-kie
	Ms TSUI May-har, Stephanie
	Ms LEUNG Siu-ling
	Mr IP Kai-leung, Jacky
	Mr PANG Leung-ting
	Ms CHUNG Ming-sun, May
	Miss CHAN Lo-yee, Louise
	Mr WONG Ching-yu, Edward
	Mr LAM Tsz-kan
	Mr LEUNG Man-liang, Matthew
-	Special Magistrates
	Mr TAM Ka-huen
	Mr SO Kai-cheung *
	Miss HO Lai-ming *
	Miss LAU Suk-han
	Mr MOK Tze-chung, Andrew
	Miss LEUNG Nga-yan, Frances
	Mr YU Chun-pong
	Mr LAM Hei-wei, Arthur

*	Left service in 2018
#	Retired in 2018

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Court of Final Appeal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE COURT OF FINAL APPEAL

	Caseload			Disposal*
	2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
Applications for leave to appeal
- Criminal	61	65	67	68 (39)	57 (36)	80 (35)
- Civil	68	47	127	63 (31)	68 (36)	57 (40)
Total	129	112	194	131	125	137
Substantive appeals
- Criminal	19	11	29	18	13	25
- Civil	13	15	11	15	18	11
Total	32	26	40	33	31	36
Miscellaneous proceedings	0	0	0	0	0	0

*	Case disposal refers to applications for leave to appeal/appeals which have been allowed, dismissed, withdrawn, abandoned or discontinued
	The figures in brackets indicate the number of applications dismissed under Rule 7 of the Court of Final Appeal Rules, Cap. 484A

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE COURT OF FINAL APPEAL

	Average Waiting Time (days)
	Target	2016	2017	2018
Applications for leave to appeal
From notice of hearing to hearing
-Criminal	45	42	44	43
-Civil	35	33	33	35
Substantive appeals
From notice of hearing to hearing
-Criminal	100	98	90	98
-Civil	120	117	118	111

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

High Court

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE HIGH COURT

		Caseload			Disposal *
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
Court of Appeal
Appellate
-	Criminal
	Appeals from the Court of First Instance	172	179	177	151	160	169
	Appeals from the District Court	222	237	205	229	206	211
	Sub-total	394	416	382	380	366	380
-	Civil
	Appeals from the Court of First Instance	214	264	580	226	193	478
	Appeals from the District Court	12	16	14	16	11	17
	Miscellaneous Appeals	20	18	17	31	20	12
	Sub-total	246	298	611	273	224	507
Review of Sentences
-	Criminal
	Reviews from the Court of First Instance	2	0	0	0	2	0
	Reviews from the District Court	2	2	5	1	4	2
	Reviews from the Magistrates' Courts	2	2	1	0	3	0
	Sub-total	6	4	6	1	9	2
	Total	646	718	999	654	599	889
Miscellaneous Proceedings⁺		-	83	204	-	39	178

*	Case disposal refers to appeals/reviews which have been allowed, dismissed, withdrawn, discontinued or abandoned with or without court order
⁺	A new case type created to capture criminal and civil miscellaneous matters before the Court of Appeal with effect from 1 July 2017. Its caseload was formerly subsumed under High Court Miscellaneous Proceedings and categorized under civil jurisdiction of the Court of First Instance

		Caseload			Disposal *
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
Court of First Instance
Appellate
-	Criminal
	Appeals from Magistrates' Courts	702	659	620	713	719	555
-	Civil
	Appeals from Labour Tribunal	27	45	30	30	30	27
	Appeals from Small Claims Tribunal	44	66	63	49	43	56
	Appeals from Minor Employment Claims Adjudication Board	2	5	3	3	5	1
	Miscellaneous Appeals	5	3	3	2	5	5
	Sub-total	78	119	99	84	83	89
	Total	780	778	719	797	802	644

First Instance
-	Criminal Jurisdiction
	Criminal Cases	497	449	421	506	519	433
	Confidential Miscellaneous Proceedings	405	382	402	405	382	402
	Application for Discharge	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Miscellaneous Proceedings (Criminal)^{^}	-	374	789	-	295	686
	Sub-total	902	1 205	1 612	911	1 196	1 521
-	Civil Jurisdiction
	High Court Actions	3 448	3 041	3 010	2 093	1 971	1 709
	Miscellaneous Proceedings^@	3 617	2 778	2 274	2 577	2 205	1 497
	Bankruptcy & Companies Winding-up⁺	10 298	8 880	8 550	10 107	8 838	8 359
	Personal Injuries Actions	1 447	1 394	1 307	1 255	1 301	1 408
	Other cases^#	579	1 507	3 365	381	517	1 134
	Sub-total	19 389	17 600	18 506	16 413	14 832	14 107
	Total	20 291	18 805	20 118	17 324	16 028	15 628

-	Masters Chambers
	Interlocutory hearings^**	27 684	24 882	24 530	24 798	22 549	21 924
	Taxation bills	654	681	638	426⁽¹⁾	527⁽¹⁾	486⁽¹⁾
-	Probate
	Applications	18 368	20 477	20 797	18 189⁽²⁾	19 537⁽²⁾	19 886⁽²⁾

*	Case disposal refers to appeals which have been allowed, dismissed, withdrawn, discontinued or abandoned with or without court order; criminal cases where defendants have been convicted or acquitted; and civil cases where claims have been successfully made or dismissed
^{^}	A new case type created to capture criminal miscellaneous matters before the Court of First Instance with effect from 1 July 2017. Its caseload was formerly subsumed under High Court Miscellaneous Proceedings and categorized under civil jurisdiction of First Instance
^@	An existing case type revised to exclude miscellaneous matters before the Court of Appeal and criminal miscellaneous matters before the Court of First Instance with effect from 1 July 2017
⁺	Cases include Bankruptcy Proceedings, Companies Winding-up Proceedings, Applications for Interim Order (Bankruptcy) and Applications to Set Aside Statutory Demands
^#	Other cases include Constitutional and Administrative Law Proceedings, Admiralty Actions, Adoptions, Bill of Sale Registrations, Book Debt Registrations, Commercial Actions, Construction and Arbitration Cases, Matrimonial Causes, Applications under the Mental Health Ordinance, Probate Actions, Stop Notices and Confidential Miscellaneous Proceedings (Civil) (an existing case type revised to include confidential matters in civil nature before the Court of First Instance which came into effect on 26 June 2017)
**	The caseload figure represents the number of interlocutory applications listed with hearings, and the disposal figure represents the number of the interlocutory applications heard in the reporting period
	Note (1) : Case disposal refers to taxation bills processed
	Note (2) : Case disposal refers to grants issued/grants resealed/estates administration completed by the Official Administrator in summary manner

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE HIGH COURT

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
Court of Appeal
-	Criminal - from setting down of a case to hearing	50	46	47	49
-	Civil - from application to fix date to hearing	90	86	89	88
Court of First Instance
-	Criminal Fixture List - from filing of indictment to hearing*	-	291	164	167
-	Civil Fixture List - from application to fix date to hearing	180	155	163	168
-	Civil Running List - from not-to-be-warned date to hearing	30	13	16	38
-	Appeals from Magistrates' Courts - from lodging of Notice of Appeal to hearing	90	105	91	103

A new Practice Direction on criminal proceedings in the Court of First Instance of the High Court was promulgated in June 2017 to enhance management of criminal proceedings. Having regard to the new procedures under the Practice Direction, consideration is being given to review how the average waiting time for the Criminal Fixture List should be measured. In addition, the Criminal Expedited List has replaced the Criminal Running List. The way to measure the average waiting times of the Criminal Expedited List and the setting of its target are being considered in the light of the operation of the new measures

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Competition Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE COMPETITION TRIBUNAL

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Application for Review	0	0	0	0	0	0
-	Enforcement Action	0	2	1	0	0	0
-	Action	0	0	2	0	0	0
-	Miscellaneous Proceedings	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	0	2	3	0	0	0

The Competition Tribunal commenced operation on 14 December 2015
*	Case disposal refers to applications / claims which have been successfully made or dismissed

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE COMPETITION TRIBUNAL

As there are only two cases being set down for trial/substantive hearing in the Competition Tribunal, the waiting time is inapplicable. The target average waiting time will be considered when more cases are set down for trial/substantive hearing at the Tribunal

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

District Court

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE DISTRICT COURT

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Criminal Jurisdiction
	Criminal Cases	1 215	1 156	1 188	1 075	1 050	988
-	Civil Jurisdiction
	Civil	6 269	5 815	6 067	4 650	4 893	4 649
	Tax Claim	1 679	1 658	1 831	1 259	1 657	1 517
	Distress for Rent	4 265	3 623	3 424	4 232	3 628	3 344
	Employee's Compensation	2 929	2 939	3 038	2 647	2 804	3 008
	Other civil cases ⁺	6 760	6 515	7 093	5 904	5 799	5 709
	Sub-total	21 902	20 550	21 453	18 692	18 781	18 227
-	Family Jurisdiction
	Matrimonial Causes	16 966	17 006	16 458	12 961	14 782	14 933
	Joint Applications	4 988	6 296	6 540	4 235	4 612	5 388
	Miscellaneous Proceedings	273	266	275	257	242	244
	Adoption Applications	70	66	72	62	62	55
	Sub-total	22 297	23 634	23 345	17 515⁽¹⁾	19 698⁽¹⁾	20 620⁽¹⁾
	Total (Civil)	44 199	44 184	44 798	36 207	38 479	38 847
	Total	45 414	45 340	45 986	37 282	39 529	39 835

-	Masters Chambers
	Interlocutory hearings^**	7 976	7 502	7 683	6 491	6 500	6 634
-	Taxation bills
	Divorce	1 011	1 013	941	1 209	905	870
	Others	459	466	379	173	142	320
	Sub-total	1 470	1 479	1 320	1 382⁽²⁾	1 047⁽²⁾	1 190⁽²⁾
	Total	9 446	8 981	9 003	7 873	7 547	7 824

*	Case disposal refers to those where defendants have been convicted or acquitted and those where claims have been successfully made or dismissed
+	Other civil cases include Miscellaneous Proceedings, Stamp Duty (Ordinance) Appeals, Equal Opportunities Actions, Personal Injuries Cases, Occupational Deafness (Compensation) Appeals, Pneumoconiosis (Compensation) Appeals, Estate Agents Appeals and Stop Notice Cases (a new case type created to capture stop notice cases with effect from 3 September 2018)
**	The caseload figure represents the number of interlocutory applications listed with hearings, and the disposal figure represents the number of the interlocutory applications heard in the reporting period
	Note (1) : Case disposal refers to Decree Absolute granted and Adoption Orders made
	Note (2) : Case disposal refers to taxation bills processed

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE DISTRICT COURT

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
Criminal - from first appearance of defendants in District Court to hearing		100	118	152	187
Civil Fixture List - from date of listing to hearing		120	99	102	95
Civil Running List - from not-to-be-warned date to hearing		30	15	25	16
Dissolution of marriage - from setting down of a case to hearing
-	Special Procedure List	35	34	34	35
-	Defended List (all hearings)	110	65	85	111
-	Financial applications - from setting down of a case to hearing	110-140	86	95	90

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Lands Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE LANDS TRIBUNAL

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Appeal cases	252	482	313	194	238	370
-	Compensation cases	17	6	11	8	4	9
-	Building management cases	297	281	269	272	248	237
-	Tenancy cases	4 047	3 811	3 663	3 359	3 031	3 011
-	Lands compulsory sale applications	11	15	40	15	23	11
-	Miscellaneous proceedings applications	5	58	3	5	5	29
	Total	4 629	4 653	4 299	3 853	3 549	3 667

*	Case disposal refers to appeals which have been allowed or dismissed and trials or hearings which have been concluded

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE LANDS TRIBUNAL

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
From setting down of a case to hearing
-	Appeal cases	90	30	-*	20
-	Compensation cases	90	41	60	38
-	Building management cases	90	35	44	29
-	Tenancy cases	50	26	23	19

*	As there is no appeal case filed, the waiting time is inapplicable

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Magistrates' Courts

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE MAGISTRATES' COURTS

		Caseload			Disposal *
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Charge Cases	31 440	30 860	30 221	31 554	30 550	29 607
-	Hawker Cases	4 988	1 963	1 628	4 988	1 965	1 626
-	Departmental & Private Summonses	181 670	179 753	175 738	178 042	179 223	174 693
-	Driving-Offence Points Summonses	1 786	2 333	2 240	1 901	2 213	2 251
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Traffic)	611	606	532	611	617	530
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Public Cleanliness and Obstruction)^{^}	112	115	72	113	115	77
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Smoking Offences)	29	34	24	28	27	26
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Vehicle Idling)	0	0	0	0	0	0
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Mandatory Window Inspection)	6	8	13	6	5	16
-	Fixed Penalty Summonses (Plastic Shopping Bag)	3	2	0	2	3	0
-	Miscellaneous Proceedings	11 213	11 379	11 052	11 378	11 511	10 857
-	Departmental Notice	810	677	676	755	748	636
-	Fixed Penalty Notice (Traffic)	98 383	107 958	115 045	95 398	106 287	110 020
-	Fixed Penalty Notice (Public Cleanliness and Obstruction)^{^}	2 142	2 455	2 388	2 206	2 407	2 335
-	Fixed Penalty Notice (Smoking Offences)	846	823	861	796	872	870
-	Fixed Penalty Notice (Vehicle Idling)	0	0	0	0	0	0
-	Fixed Penalty Notice (Mandatory Window Inspection)	4	11	122	5	11	79
-	Fixed Penalty Recovery Order (Plastic Shopping Bag)	5	0	0	5	0	0
	Total	334 048	338 977	340 612	327 788	336 554	333 623

*	Case disposal refers to cases where defendants have been convicted or acquitted after trial or hearing, pre-hearing payments of all penalties and costs, and applications which have been granted, refused, withdrawn or struck out
^{^}	Case types renamed pursuant to the amendment of the title of Cap. 570 from "Fixed Penalty (Public Cleanliness Offences) Ordinance" to "Fixed Penalty (Public Cleanliness and Obstruction) Ordinance" which came into effect on 24 September 2016

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE MAGISTRATES' COURTS

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
Summonses - from plea to date of trial		50	67	65	76
Charge cases except for Juvenile Court - from plea to date of trial
-	For defendants in custody	30-45	36	31	47
-	For defendants on bail	45-60	41	40	57
Charge cases for Juvenile Court - from plea to date of trial
-	For defendants in custody	30-45	49	-*	-*
-	For defendants on bail	45-60	39	48	58

*	As there is no charge case for the Juvenile Court where the defendant is remanded in custody, the waiting time is inapplicable

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Labour Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE LABOUR TRIBUNAL

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Claims	4 326	4 015	3 955	4 048	4 048	3 607
-	Reviews	78	86	94	77	86	89
-	Restore claims	46	68	43	43	62	42
-	Set-aside awards	81	80	88	60	78	87
	Total	4 531	4 249	4 180	4 228	4 274	3 825

*	Case disposal refers to claims which have been concluded, including claims awarded, dismissed, settled, withdrawn and transferred

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE LABOUR TRIBUNAL

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
-	From appointment to filing of a case	30	27	26	25
-	From filing of a case to first hearing	30	26	24	25

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Small Claims Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE SMALL CLAIMS TRIBUNAL

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Claims	49 169	51 012	55 007	48 794	51 509	54 355
-	Reviews	216	223	208	206	224	203
	Total	49 385	51 235	55 215	49 000	51 733	54 558

*	Case disposal refers to claims which have been made successfully or dismissed

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE SMALL CLAIMS TRIBUNAL

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
-	From filing of a case to first hearing	60	34	32	33

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Obscene Articles Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE OBSCENE ARTICLES TRIBUNAL

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Articles for determination	0	0	9 073	0	0	9 073
-	Articles for classification	226	174	167	222	179	168
-	Articles for review	0	4	0	0	2	2
-	Articles for reconsideration	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total	226	178	9 240	222	181	9 243

*	Case disposal refers to those articles which have been determined or classified; those in respect of which determination or classification is not required with consent of both parties; and those in respect of which determination or classification has been reviewed or reconsidered

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE OBSCENE ARTICLES TRIBUNAL

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
-	From referral by a magistrate to determination	21	-^#	-^#	22
-	From receipt of application to classification	5	3	3	3
-	From receipt of application to review	35	-^{^}	29	-^{^}
-	From receipt of application to reconsideration	35	- *	- *	- *

	^#		As there is no application for determination filed, the waiting time is inapplicable
	^{^}		As there is no application for review filed, the waiting time is inapplicable
	*		As there is no application for reconsideration filed, the waiting time is inapplicable

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Coroner's Court

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE CORONER'S COURT

		Caseload			Disposal*
		2016	2017	2018	2016	2017	2018
-	Death inquests with jury	66	124	155	63	112	152
-	Death inquests without jury	17	7	12	14	5	9
	Total	83	131	167	77	117	161

*	Case disposal refers to death inquests concluded

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE CORONER'S COURT

		Average Waiting Time (days)
		Target	2016	2017	2018
-	From date of listing to hearing	42	39	79	65

Membership List of
the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee

-	Chairman	Chief Judge, High Court
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice S C POON, JA Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice H C AU Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice Mohan T BHARWANEY Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Registrar, High Court
		Chief District Judge
		Registrar, District Court
		His Honour Judge C M LEUNG Master, High Court
		Ms Jenny FUNG Department of Justice
		Mr Thomas Edward KWONG, JP Legal Aid Department
		Mr Paul LAM, SC Hong Kong Bar Association
		Mr Brian GILCHRIST Law Society of Hong Kong
		Mrs Cecilia WONG Hong Kong Mediation Accreditation Association Limited
		Miss Emma LAU Judiciary Administrator
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
-	Secretary	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)1

Membership List of the Working Party on Mediation

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Johnson LAM, V-P
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice Barnabas FUNG, GBS Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice H C AU Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Madam Justice B. CHU Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice David LOK Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS Registrar, High Court up to 9.9.2018
		Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court w.e.f. 10.9.2018
		His Honour Judge Justin KO Acting Chief District Judge
		Mr Simon LEE Department of Justice up to 20.5.2018
		Ms Ada CHEN Department of Justice w.e.f. 21.5.2018
		Mr Chris CHONG Legal Aid Department
		Ms Elaine LIU Hong Kong Bar Association
		Mrs Cecilia WONG Law Society of Hong Kong
		Mr CHAN Bing-woon, SBS, JP
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
		Ms April LAM Senior Mediation Affairs Officer
-	Secretary	Ms Eva KONG Mediation Co-ordinator w.e.f. 1.11.2018
		Ms Ada LAW Mediation Co-ordinator up to 31.10.2018

Membership List of the Court Users' Committees

Admiralty Court Users’ Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Anthony CHAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
-	Members	Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS Registrar, High Court (up to 9.9.2018)
		Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
		Mr Bill AMOS
		Mr Nigel BINNERSLEY
		Ms Brenda CHARK
		Mr Jeevan HINGORANI
		Mr Andrew HORTON
		Mr Jim JAMES
		Mr Matthew LAM
		Mr George LAMPLOUGH
		Mr Damien LARACY
		Mr William LEUNG
		Mr Rory MACFARLANE
		Mr Nicholas MALLARD
		Mr Peter MILLS
		Mr Chris POTTS
		Mr Jason TOMS
		Mr Sam TSUI
		Mr Richard WILMOT
		Mr Colin WRIGHT
		Mr Jon W. ZINKE
		Mr Sunny KWAN Chief Bailiff (Administration and Admiralty) (up to 13.3.2018)
		Mr YU Tak-shun Ag.Chief Bailiff (Administration & Admiralty) (from 14.3.2018 to 2.12.2018)
		Ms CHIU Shuk-man Ag.Chief Bailiff (Administration & Admiralty) (w.e.f. 3.12.2018)
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
-	Secretary	Ms Winifred CHAN Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)

Civil Court Users' Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Johnson LAM, V-P Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice S C POON, JA Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice Godfrey LAM Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice Anderson CHOW Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS Registrar, High Court (up to 9.9.2018)
		Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
		His Honour Judge Justin KO Acting Chief District Judge
		Mr Francis KWAN Department of Justice
		Mr Steve WONG Legal Aid Department
		Ms Ophelia LOK Official Receiver's Office
		Mr Paul SHIEH, SC
		Mr Brian W. Gilchrist
		Mr Peter CHUA
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
		Mr Kenneth LIU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 (up to 4.6.2018)
		Mr Calvin YAU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 (from 5.6.2018 to 18.11.2018)
		Mr Joe CHENG Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 (w.e.f. 19.11.2018)
-	Secretary	Ms Winifred CHAN Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)

Sub-Committee on Companies and Insolvency Matters of the Civil Court Users’ Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Jonathan R HARRIS Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice Peter NG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Master Reuden LAI
		Master K H HUI
		Mr William MF WONG, SC
		Mr HO Man-kei, Keith
		Mr Mat NG
		Ms Agnes MAK
		Ms Ophelia LOK Official Receiver's Office
		Ms Kitty TSUI Companies Registry
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
		Mr Kenneth LIU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 (up to 4.6.2018)
		Mr Calvin YAU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 (from 5.6.2018 to 18.11.2018)
		Mr Joe CHENG Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 (w.e.f. 19.11.2018)
-	Secretary	Ms Winifred CHAN Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)

Criminal Court Users' Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Madam Justice Anthea PANG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice Albert WONG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS Registrar, High Court (up to 9.9.2018)
		Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
		His Honour Judge Justin KO Acting Chief District Judge
		Mr SO Wai-tak, Victor Acting Chief Magistrate
		Mr William TAM, SC Department of Justice
		Ms Juliana O Y CHAN Legal Aid Department
		Ms Grace WONG The Duty Lawyer Service
		Mr TONG Wing-tak, Eric Independent Commission Against Corruption (up to 2.11.2018)
		Mr HO Kwok-keung, Simon Independent Commission Against Corruption (w.e.f. 3.11.2018)
		Mr YAU Siu-kei, Crusade Hong Kong Police Force (up to 9.9.2018)
		Mr CHAN Wing-on, Francis Hong Kong Police Force (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
		Mr WONG Kwok-hing Correctional Services Department (up to 24.11.2018)
		Mr LEUNG Kin-ip, Kenneth Correctional Services Department (w.e.f. 25.11.2018)
		Mr Graham HARRIS, SC
		Mr Kenneth NG
		Mr HO Yat-wan, Alec
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
		Mr Calvin YAU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3
-	Secretary	Ms Winifred CHAN Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)

Family Proceedings Court Users' Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Johnson LAM, V-P Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
-	Members	The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court (w.e.f. 7.6.2018)
		The Hon Madam Justice B. CHU Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Mr LUNG Kim-wan, BBS Registrar, High Court (up to 9.9.2018)
		Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court (w.e.f. 10.9.2018)
		His Honour Judge C K CHAN Acting Principal Family Court Judge
		Her Honour Judge Sharon D MELLOY Family Court Judge (up to 28.11.2018)
		His Honour Judge Ivan WONG Family Court Judge
		Mr Dick HO Registrar, District Court
		Mr FUNG Man-chung Social Welfare Department (up to 6.4.2018)
		Ms PANG Kit-ling Social Welfare Department (w.e.f. 7.4.2018)
		Mr LI Chi-keung, Ben Legal Aid Department (up to 12.8.2018)
		Miss CHAN Dao-kit, Doreen Legal Aid Department (w.e.f. 13.8.2018)
		Ms CHAN Miu Kuen, Juliana Official Solicitor's Office (up to 12.8.2018)
		Mr LI Chi-keung, Ben Official Solicitor's Office (w.e.f. 13.8.2018)
		Ms Corinne REMEDIOS
		Mr Dennis HO
		Ms Jain BROWN
-	In Attendance	Mrs Erika HUI Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
		Ms Jackie LUI Chief Judicial Clerk (Family Court)
-	Secretary	Ms Winifred CHAN Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)

Competition Tribunal Users' Committee

-	Chairman	The Hon Mr Justice Godfrey LAM President of the Competition Tribunal
-	Members	The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU YEUNG Deputy President of the Competition Tribunal
		Master K H HUI Master, High Court
		Mr Francis KWAN Department of Justice
		Mr Steven PARKER Competition Commission
		Mr Benson CHENG Communications Authority
		Mr P Y LO
		Mr CHAN Nicholas Hiu Fung
-	Secretary	Miss Priscilla WONG Senior Judicial Clerk I (Competition Tribunal)

Membership List of the Governing Body of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute

-	Chairman	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA, GBM Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal
-	Members	The Hon Mr Justice R A V RIBEIRO Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal
		The Hon Mr Justice Frank STOCK, GBS Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal
		The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG Chief Judge of the High Court (up to 24.10.2018)
		The Hon Mr Justice Wally YEUNG Acting Chief Judge of the High Court (w.e.f. 25.10.2018)
		The Hon Madam Justice Carlye CHU Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
		The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		The Hon Madam Justice Mimmie CHAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
		Deputy High Court Judge Tony POON Judge with special responsibility for the Executive Body of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute
		His Honour Judge Justin KO Acting Chief District Judge
		Mr SO Wai-tak Acting Chief Magistrate
		Miss Emma LAU Judiciary Administrator

Judiciary Administration

The Judiciary Administration is headed by the Judiciary Administrator, who assists the Chief Justice in the overall administration of the Judiciary. It provides support to the courts in the administration of justice and their operations.

Judiciary Administration

Miss Emma LAU , Judiciary Administrator

Operations Division

Mrs Erika HUI, Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)

(a)	Information Technology Office (Technical)	Mr Kenneth YEUNG	Chief Systems Manager (Information Technology) [up to 2.9.2018]
		Ms Candy CHAN	Acting Chief Systems Manager (Information Technology) [w.e.f. 3.9.2018]
		Mr Kenneth YEUNG	Chief Systems Manager (Special Duties) [w.e.f. 3.9.2018]
(b)	Information Technology Office (Operational)	Mr Harry TSANG	Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Quality and Information Technology)^{Note 1}
(c)	Operations Division	Mr Francis CHENG	Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Operations) [up to 10.10.2018]
		Ms Nancy MAK	Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Operations) [w.e.f. 11.10.2018]
		Ms Winifred CHAN	Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)
(d)	Support to Judges Section	Mr Kenneth LIU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 [up to 4.6.2018]
		Ms Hedy WU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 [w.e.f. 19.11.2018]
		Ms Hedy WU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 [up to 18.11.2018] [temporarily sharing the duties of Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 from 5.6.2018 to 18.11.2018]
		Mr Joe CHENG	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 [w.e.f. 19.11.2018]
		Mr Calvin YAU	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 [up to 14.8.2018] [temporarily sharing the duties of Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 from 5.6.2018 to 14.8.2018]
		Mr Calvin YAU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 [w.e.f. 15.8.2018] [temporarily sharing the duties of Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1 from 15.8.2018 to 18.11.2018]
(e)	Clerk of Court's Office	Mrs Pamela PANG	Clerk of Court [up to 27.5.2018]
		Ms Terri TANG	Acting Clerk of Court [w.e.f. 28.5.2018]
(f)	Court of Final Appeal Registry	Ms Wendy CHUI	Senior Judicial Clerk I (Court of Final Appeal)
(g)	High Court Registry	Ms Catherine LI	Chief Judicial Clerk (High Court Registry)
(h)	Competition Tribunal Registry	Ms Priscilla WONG	Senior Judicial Clerk I (Competition Tribunal)
(i)	District Court	Mr Joe CHENG	Chief Judicial Clerk (Registry, District Court) [up to 18.11.2018]
		Ms Anny TAM	Acting Chief Judicial Clerk (Registry, District Court) [w.e.f. 19.11.2018]
		Ms Clare TSANG	Chief Judicial Clerk (Courts, District Court)
(j)	Family Court Registry	Ms Jackie LUI	Chief Judicial Clerk (Family Court)
(k)	Lands Tribunal Registry	Ms Elsa CHAN	Chief Judicial Clerk (Lands Tribunal)
(l)	Magistrates' Courts General Office	Ms Pauline KWOK	Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies)
(m)	Probate Registry	Ms Memory WONG	Chief Probate Officer
(n)	Labour Tribunal Registry	Ms Wendy SHUM	Registrar (Labour Tribunal)
(o)	Small Claims Tribunal Registry	Mr Jackson CHAN	Acting Chief Judicial Clerk (Small Claims Tribunal)
(p)	Court Language Section	Mr Brian YAU	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)1 [up to 25.6.2018]
		Mr Brian YAU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)1 [w.e.f. 26.6.2018]
		Ms Millia TANG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)2
		Ms Patience IP	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)3
(q)	Bailiff Section	Mr Sunny KWAN	Chief Bailiff (Administration and Admiralty) [up to 13.3.2018]
		Mr T S YU	Acting Chief Bailiff (Administration and Admiralty) [from 14.3.2018 to 2.12.2018]
		Ms S M CHIU	Acting Chief Bailiff (Administration and Admiralty) [w.e.f. 3.12.2018]
		Mr C S DONG	Assistant Chief Bailiff [temporarily sharing the duties of Chief Bailiff (Operations) up to 14.1.2018]
		Ms F L CHIM	Acting Chief Bailiff (Operations) [from 15.1.2018 to 18.7.2018]
		Ms F L CHIM	Chief Bailiff (Operations) [w.e.f. 19.7.2018]
(r)	Mediation Section	Ms April LAM	Senior Mediation Affairs Officer
		Mrs Heidy KWONG	Mediation Coordinator (Family) [up to 28.2.2018]
		Ms Ada LAW	Acting Mediation Coordinator [from 5.3.2018 to 31.10.2018]
		Ms Eva KONG	Mediation Affairs Officer (2) [temporarily sharing the duties of Mediation Coordinator w.e.f. 1.11.2018]
(s)	Information Technology Office (Technical)	Mr Kenneth CHAN	Senior Systems Manager (1)
		Ms Candy CHAN	Senior Systems Manager (2) [up to 2.9.2018]
		Mr Jones TAM	Systems Manager (2) [temporarily sharing the duties of Senior Systems Manager (2) from 3.9.2018 to 2.12.2018]
		Mr Jones TAM	Acting Senior Systems Manager (2) [w.e.f. 3.12.2018]
		Mr Kelly LAU	Senior Systems Manager (3)
		Mr Jeffrey FUNG	Senior Systems Manager (4) [up to 13.5.2018]
		Mr Alex LEE	Acting Senior Systems Manager (4) [w.e.f. 14.5.2018]
(t)	Information Technology Office (Operational)	Mr James WONG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)1 [up to 31.1.2018]
		Ms Eva LEE	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)1 [w.e.f. 1.2.2018]
		Ms Carol FUNG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)2
		Ms Mimi HO	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)3
		Mr Barry LEE	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)4

Development Division

Ms Patricia SO, Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Development)

(a)	Development Office	Ms Wendy CHEUNG	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)1
		Mr David LAU	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)2 [post lapsed on 27.11.2018]
		Mr David LAU	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)(Special Duties) [w.e.f. 27.11.2018]
(b)	Press & Public Relations Office	Ms Daisy KWOK	Principal Information Officer
(c)	Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct	Ms Lilian PO	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct) [up to 8.1.2018]
		Ms Lilian PO	Chief Judiciary Executive (Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct) [from 9.1.2018 to 23.12.2018]
		Ms Vivian WAH	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct) [w.e.f. 24.12.2018]

Quality Division

Mr Harry TSANG, Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Quality and Information Technology)

(a)	Complaints Office	Ms Crystal LEE	Senior Judiciary Executive (Complaints)
(b)	Court Reporters Office	Ms Maggie CHENG	Senior Court Reporter (Development) [up to 17.8.2018]
		Mr Charles LEE	Judiciary Executive (Digital Audio Recording and Transcription Services) [temporarily sharing the duties of Senior Court Reporter (Development) from 20.8.2018 to 19.11.2018]
		Ms Maggie CHENG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Digital Audio Recording and Transcription Services) [w.e.f. 20.11.2018]
(c)	Legal Reference and Library Section	Ms Miranda FUNG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Legal Reference and Library)
(d)	Management Information Section	Ms Shirley LAU	Senior Judiciary Executive (Management Information)
(e)	Management Review Section	Mr William CHUNG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Management Review) [up to 25.2.2018]
		Ms Prudence CHAN	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Management Review) [w.e.f. 26.2.2018]

Corporate Services Division

Mrs Connie NGAN, Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Corporate Services)

(a)	Project Planning and Accommodation Section	Mr Hermes CHAN	Principal Executive Officer (Project Planning and Accommodation) [up to 10.10.2018]
		Mr Francis Cheng	Acting Principal Executive Officer (Project Planning and Accommodation) [w.e.f. 11.10.2018]
(b)	Finance Section	Mr Raymond NG	Chief Treasury Accountant
(c)	Judges and Judicial Officers Section	Ms Queenie LEUNG	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Judges and Judicial Officers)
(d)	Support Staff Section	Ms Ivy TANG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support Staff)


Note 1:	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Quality and Information Technology) reports to the Judiciary Administrator direct in respect of areas of his portfolio other than those related to Information Technology Office (Operational).

Judicial Training

Deputy High Court Judge POON was appointed in 2017 to take responsibility for strategic plans and implementation of judicial training programmes. The Judiciary further appointed three directors and three counsel to the Executive Body ("EB") of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute ("JI") in the latter part of 2018. With this increase in personnel, the JI has embarked on its next phase of development. The EB has been identifying specific training needs for each court level, personalising training for magistrates, promoting the concept of judicial wellness, as well as providing solid research support to Judges and Judicial Officers.

Local Judicial Training Activities Organised by the Hong Kong Judicial Institute

Date	Activity
13.1.2018	Visit to Tuen Mun Children and Juvenile Home
15.1, 23.1 & 31.1.2018	Briefing Sessions on e-Legislation System
January - May 2018	Putonghua courses
January – December 2018	Monthly lunch meetings on upcoming changes brought about by increase in jurisdiction and transitional matters for District Judges
26.1.2018	Briefing on Magistrates’ Appraisal by Deputy High Court Judge Tony POON
20.3.2018	Talk entitled “Back to Basics? Recent Developments in the UK Supreme Court” by The Rt Hon Lord Robert REED, Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal
21.3.2018	Visit to Shing Tak Centre and Caritas Pelletier Hall
28.3, 24.4, 15.6, 14.8, 23.11, 10.12 & 13.12.2018	Induction briefings for Deputy Magistrates / Adjudicators
29.3.2018	Talk on cyber security and technology crime and use of social media by Deputy High Court Judge Tony POON and Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau, Hong Kong Police Force
9.4.2018	Seminar on competition law by Professor Alison JONES, Professor of the Dickson Poon School of Law at King’s College London
12.4.2018	Talk entitled “Dispute Resolution in the 21st century” by Sir David FOSKETT, Judge of the High Court of England and Wales
21.4.2018	Visit to Mother’s Choice
15.5.2018	Talk entitled “The Hong Kong Apology Ordinance (Cap. 631): the Most Extensive Apology-Protection Legislation in the World” by Professor Robyn CARROLL, Professor of the Law School at the University of Western Australia
7.6.2018	Presentation entitled “The Economics, Reality and Practice of Derivatives, the Documentation of Derivatives, and Context and Relevant Background” by P.R.I.M.E. Finance experts
28.6.2018	Talk on Use of Chinese in courts by Professor CHAN Man Sing
19.7.2018	Talk entitled “Comparative Developments in Contractual Good Faith” by Professor Bryan HORRIGAN, Dean of the Faculty of Law at Monash University
30.8.2018	Talk entitled “The PI Case Manager and A Multiplier Story” for District Judges by the Hon Mr Justice BHARWANEY, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
September 2018 – January 2019	Use of Chinese workshops
20.9.2018	Sharing Session on cost management with Sir Rupert JACKSON, retired Justice of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales
21.9.2018	Case Management workshop for Magistrates
10.10.2018	Seminar on protection of intellectual property rights for delegated judges from Hong Kong and the Mainland
10.10.2018	Talk entitled “Judicial Protection of Intellectual Property Rights in Mainland China: Reform and Development” by Justice TAO Kaiyuan, Vice President of the Supreme People’s Court, Grand Justice of the second rank
October 2018 – January 2019	Putonghua courses
21.12.2018	Sentencing Workshop for Magistrates

Other Local Judicial Training Activities Attended by Judges and Judicial Officers

Date	Activity
22.2.2018	Talk entitled “Defending the Indefensible? Safeguarding Liberty in Controversies Involving Not Very Nice People”, organised by the Hong Kong Bar Association
8.3.2018	Talk entitled “Combination of Adversary and Inquisitorial Legal Systems - The Practice of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia”, organised by the Asian Academy of International Law
18 – 20.4.2018	Global Conference entitled “The HCCH 125 – Ways Forward: Challenges and Opportunities in an Increasingly Connected World”, organised by the Hague Conference on Private International Law
3.5.2018	Talk entitled “Human Rights and Refugee Law in the UK: A Developing Relationship”, organised by the Hong Kong Bar Association
8.5.2018	Talk entitled “The Past 21 Years of Common Law in Hong Kong: From Strength to Strength” by the Hon Chief Justice MA, organised by the Hong Kong Chapter, Law Council of Australia
25.6.2018	Opening address of ICON-S 5th Annual Conference by the Hon Chief Justice MA and Talk entitled “Balancing National Security and Public Order with Human Rights: A Judicial Perspective” by The Rt Hon the Lord NEUBERGER of Abbotsbury, Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, organised by the University of Hong Kong
20.9.2018	Talk on Efficient Case Management of Litigation and Arbitration, organised by IMF Bentham
8.10.2018	A Panel Discussion on Hong Kong’s Unified Screening Mechanism, organised by the University of Hong Kong
6.11 & 16.11.2018	Lectures entitled “Is Common Sense the First Rule in Statutory Interpretation?” and “The Effect in Law of a Signature on a Legal Document”, organised by the University of Hong Kong
7.11.2018	Seminar entitled “Hong Kong: Children's Right to Asylum”, organised by the University of Hong Kong
20.11.2018	Lecture entitled “The Administration of International Criminal Justice: Challenges and Prospects”, organised by the Chinese University of Hong Kong
10.12.2018	Proportionality in Asia Conference, organised by the University of Hong Kong
10.12 & 13.12.2018	Training Programme on Identification of Victims of Human Trafficking, organised by the New Medico-Legal Society of Hong Kong and Liberty Asia

Judicial Training Activities Organised with/by Other Jurisdictions/Organisations

Date	Activity
11 – 13.7.2018	Public Law Conference in Melbourne, Australia, co-organised by the University of Melbourne and the University of Cambridge
21 – 25.9.2018	Judicial Insolvency Network meeting and the International Insolvency Institute’s 18th Annual Conference in New York, the United States
23 – 25.10.2018	Judicial Leadership Program: Heads of Jurisdiction in Melbourne, Australia, organised by the National Judicial College of Australia
1 – 2.11.2018	9th AIJA Appellate Judges’ Conference in Brisbane, Australia, organised by the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration
13 – 16.11.2018	2018 Asia Pacific Coroners’ Society Conference in Canberra, Australia

Number of Visits and Visitors to the Judiciary

	2017	2018
Local
No. of visits	273	260
No. of visitors	8 640	8 128
The Mainland
No. of visits	31	50
No. of visitors	643	1 180
Overseas
No. of visits	26	29
No. of visitors	395	345
Total
No. of visits	330	339
No. of visitors	9 678	9 653

	Number of Visitors
Category of Visitors	2017	2018
Judges and legal profession	566	470
Government officials	136	460
Students and others	8 976	8 723
Total	9 678	9 653

Expenditure and Revenue of the Judiciary in 2017-2018

Recurrent Expenditure

		2017-2018 ($' 000)
-	Personal Emoluments	1,182,823
-	Departmental Expenses	451,591
-	Other Charges	12,413
	Total	1,646,827

Revenue*

		2017-2018 ($' 000)
-	Fees & Charges	211,134
-	Fines	263,435
-	Forfeitures & Others	565,699
	Total	1,040,268

*	Revenue collected by the Judiciary forms part of the Government's General Revenue

Complaints against Judges and Judicial Officers

Number of Complaints Disposed of by the Chief Justice and the Court Leaders	Nature of Complaints				2018 Total
	Judicial / Statutory Decision	Judicial Conduct	Both Judicial / Statutory Decision and Judicial Conduct	Dissatisfaction with the Court Leader’s handling and / or findings of the original complaints	2018 Total
Chief Justice	5	0	0	9	14
Chief Judge of the High Court	38	0	2	NA	40
Chief District Judge	15	0	2	NA	17
Chief Magistrate	27	3	20	NA	50
Sub-total	85	3	24	9	121

Notes:
i.	The total number of cases filed in 2018 is 502,340.
ii.	Complaints related to judicial conduct can be broadly classified according to their nature. Among complaints on judicial conduct above, 6 cases are related to attitude and behavior in court, 15 cases are related to handling of actual proceedings in court, and 6 cases are related to mixed nature.
iii.	There is no justified case among the complaints above.

Complaints against the Judiciary Administration

	Nature of Complaints	2018*
-	Complaints about procedures	50
-	Complaints about facilities	14
-	Complaints about the judicial support services	62
-	Complaints against staff of the Judiciary Administration	49
	Total	175

*	Oral complaints included