This Report provides an overview of the major events of the Judiciary in 2020. This also marks for me the last annual report of the Judiciary before my retirement as Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal.

The year of 2020 has been an extraordinary year for the Judiciary. The onset of the COVID-19 epidemic of course brought about unprecedented challenges but also presented opportunities. In light of the evolving public health situation, the Judiciary had been adjusting court business in various practicable ways, striking a balance between public health risks and administration of justice. The Judiciary adjourned all court proceedings (except urgent and essential hearings) for three months from 29 January to 3 May 2020. This came to be known as GAP (General Adjourned Period). Following GAP, the Judiciary then adopted appropriate social distancing measures (mainly for crowd control and compressing people flow) to ensure that courts can continue to carry on business as safely as circumstances permit. Where necessary, there was spacing out of court proceedings and hearings while opening hours of registries and accounts offices were adjusted. The Judiciary will remain flexible to conduct its business as efficiently as possible and as safely as circumstances require.

The epidemic provided the opportunity for the Judiciary to make greater use of technology in dealing with court business through alternative modes, alongside measures to make more flexible use of court premises and engagement of temporary judicial manpower. During the year, hearings took place by telephone, by video-conferencing or similar means with visual aid. A “browser-based” video conferencing facility option was also introduced in January 2021.

The year saw the passing of the Court Proceedings (Electronic Technology) Ordinance (Cap. 638) which provides for the electronic handling of court-related documents. This is a major step to implement the Judiciary's Information Technology Strategy Plan which will improve the efficiency of court operations in reducing paper use. Separately, the legislative amendments to the High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4), commencing in mid-January 2021, will facilitate the efficient handling of the increasing number of appeal cases in the High Court and the Court of Final Appeal, including especially judicial review applications in non-refoulement claims.

I would like to express heartfelt thanks on behalf of the Judiciary to Miss Emma LAU on her retirement from the post of the Judiciary Administrator in mid-July 2020 for her dedicated service during the past 15 years. We welcome Ms Esther LEUNG who succeeded Miss LAU to lead the Judiciary Administration.

I will be retiring on 11 January 2021 upon reaching the retirement age of 65. In March 2020, the Chief Executive accepted the recommendation of the Judicial Officers Recommendation Commission to appoint the Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, as the next Chief Justice. Following the endorsement of the Legislative Council in June 2020, the appointment will take effect from 11 January 2021.

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 would also like to express my gratitude to my fellow judges and judicial officers, as well as staff in the Judiciary for their dedication and professionalism in the face of increasing challenges. I wish everyone the very best in the years to come.

Geoffrey Ma
Chief Justice

Review of 2020

Following tradition, the year began with the Ceremonial Opening of the Legal Year on 13 January. The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA spoke about the importance of understanding how the law operates and is expected to operate in order to embrace the concept of the rule of law, with particular reference to the events that took place in the latter half of 2019. He emphasized that while the Basic Law and the Bill of Rights set out the rights and freedoms of individuals, there are clear limits to the exercise of such so as not to affect adversely to an unacceptable level the enjoyment by others of their rights. Furthermore, he said that the administration of justice has as its central characteristic the requirement of a fair trial. In a criminal case setting, the fairness of a trial means fairness to all sides, both to the prosecution and to the defence, and the court will at all times ensure that a fair trial takes place. The Chief Justice expressed that the proper administration of justice depends on judges discharging the duties and responsibilities incumbent on them. In this regard, judges do not have the duty to achieve a certain result in accordance with popular wishes. Judges look only to the letter of the law and to the spirit of the law, and nothing else.

The Chief Justice mentioned that he would retire upon reaching retirement age in January 2021. He took the opportunity to thank judges, judicial officers and staff in the Judiciary for giving him unwavering support and showing dedication in the face of unprecedented challenges. He also reiterated his commitment to the rule of law and appealed to the community to preserve and treasure it.

Facing Challenges from COVID-19 epidemic

In 2020, the Judiciary was fraught with unprecedented challenges arising from the COVID-19 epidemic. From 29 January to 3 May 2020, in view of public health considerations, the Judiciary generally adjourned court proceedings (“the General Adjourned Period” (“GAP”)) with the exception of urgent and essential business. In March 2020, the Chief Justice issued a statement to reassure the public that the Judiciary had been doing its best to cope with the disruptions to court operations. He explained that the Judiciary had been urgently exploring further ways to increase court services during the GAP without compromising the health and safety of court users, staff and judges. The Judiciary had also been promoting the greater use of technology as long as it was considered feasible and permissible under the relevant court rules and procedures. Following the GAP in May 2020, we resumed court business in an incremental and orderly manner, while putting in place appropriate social distancing and crowd management measures corresponding to the evolving public health risks. The administration of justice is an essential public service. Having capitalized from the experience of the GAP and the social distancing measures in face of the epidemic, we managed to carry on court business (with adjustments to capacity where necessary) as safely as circumstances permit.

In September 2020, in view of the number of commentaries, opinions and criticisms that had been made in relation to various decisions of the courts and judges, the Chief Justice issued a statement to explain some fundamental principles regarding the administration of justice in Hong Kong, with particular emphasis on criminal cases. The Chief Justice stressed that the constitutional duty of judges, in the exercise of judicial power, was strictly to apply the law and nothing else. Such duty did not involve judges deciding political matters or controversies. It follows that judges must not be influenced by political considerations of whatever nature. The Chief Justice stressed that there are some basic principles in the handling of a criminal case that must also be borne in mind, including the requirement of a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, the requirement that the burden is on the prosecution to prove that an accused committed a crime beyond reasonable doubt before there can be a conviction and the right to an appeal. The Chief Justice affirmed that courts and judges are not above criticism but criticisms must be informed, solidly based and properly made; otherwise it would be detrimental to public confidence in the administration of justice and ultimately to the rule of law in Hong Kong. The Chief Justice also reiterated that there must not be a politicisation of the Judiciary and its functions.

Enhancing Transparency

In accordance with the principle of open justice, all court hearings, save for some very limited exceptions (e.g. involving children), are open to the public. Judgments, reasons for verdict and reasons for sentence for District Court and above are also available on the Judiciary website. All this ensures transparency.

In 2020, the Judiciary announced additional transparency measures to enhance public understanding about its operations.

Starting from October 2020, summaries of selected decisions in the District Court and Magistrates' Courts which are of public interest were uploaded onto the Judiciary website as far as practicable.

Separately, as from July 2020, as far as complaints against judicial conduct are concerned, where there are a large number of identical or similar complaints, the Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct will post on the Judiciary website the substance of the complaints, the outcome of investigations together with the underlying reasons.

Appointment of Judges and Judicial Officers

Various judicial appointments were made in the year 2020. These include the appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG as the next Chief Justice with effect from 11 January 2021; the appointment of the Right Hon Lord Patrick HODGE as a Non-Permanent Judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal with effect from 1 January 2021; the appointment of His Honour Judge Justin KO as the Chief District Judge; and the appointment of Mr SO Wai-tak as the Chief Magistrate, both with effect from 6 January 2020.

Appointment of Judiciary Administrator

Ms Esther LEUNG has been appointed to the post of Judiciary Administrator with effect from 20 July 2020. She succeeded Miss Emma LAU, who proceeded on pre-retirement leave on 16 July 2020.

Greater Use of Information Technology (“IT”)

During the GAP when physical attendance in court premises and contact were minimized, and gathering of crowds avoided, the Judiciary took a proactive approach in making greater use of IT to support and facilitate the conduct of court business.

The Judiciary has been developing by phases an integrated court case management system (“iCMS”) across all levels of court to enable the electronic handling of court-related documents and payments. The passing of the Court Proceedings (Electronic Technology) Ordinance in July 2020 will further facilitate this. We will therefore be able to continue to improve the efficiency of litigation and reduce the use of paper. Subject to the enactment of some further subsidiary legislation, the iCMS will first be implemented at the District Court and part of the Magistrates’ Courts. This will subsequently be extended to other levels of court.

With support from the legal profession and relevant stakeholders, the Judiciary has already introduced administrative measures to enable the handling of certain documents by electronic means while at the same time ensuring security in the use of information technology. These include the creation of special email accounts to enable parties to lodge documents to the court electronically for paper disposal and the extension of the existing electronic submission platform in the District Court to the High Court, the Family Court and the Lands Tribunal.

The Judiciary made greater use of remote hearings for suitable civil cases, using video-conferencing facilities (“VCF”) and also having hearings conducted by phone. Two guidance notes were issued in April and June 2020 setting out the practice and arrangements for conducting remote hearings in civil proceedings (including trials) in the High Court, Competition Tribunal, District Court and Family Court. A cost-effective technical option involving VCF software was made available to court users in mid-June 2020. In December 2020, an additional guidance note was issued to set out further guidance for the practice for remote hearings in civil cases, including extending the use of VCF to the Labour Tribunal and Small Claims Tribunal, as well as introducing the use of a “browser-based” VCF option from 2 January 2021. The latter provided a low-cost option whereby court users would only need a normal computer (not a mobile device) with a camera function, etc. to connect to the court for VCF hearings. This new option would greatly expand the number of court hearings which can be conducted remotely. It would also facilitate the use of VCF facilities by litigants-in-person (LIPs). The Judiciary has also been planning to introduce legislative changes to enable remote hearings to take place in criminal cases.

Caseload

In 2020, the GAP and the subsequent resumption of court business with reduced capacity and social distancing measures affected court proceedings and court business. Owing to the need to refix hearings, the average court waiting times in some levels of court inevitably lengthened. There was a reduction of approximately 25% in a few case types owing to the GAP, but the reduction in others was less significant.

Following the implementation of contingency and social distancing measures in light of the changing public health situation, the overall capacity of the courts was inevitably reduced, thus affecting court proceedings and court business. That said, efforts were made to handle as many cases as possible through flexible use of court premises, dealing with cases remotely or making determinations on the papers. Meanwhile, to address the heavy work pressure at all levels of court, the Judiciary launched a new round of recruitment exercises for judges and judicial officers starting at the end 2020. The Judiciary also continued to make use of temporary judicial resources to help maintain judicial manpower as and when required at different levels of court.

In addition to the passing of the Court Proceedings (Electronic Technology) Ordinance, legislative amendments to the High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4) to streamline procedures of the High Court were also passed. The amendments will facilitate a more efficient processing of cases, including particularly the increasing number of judicial review involving non-refoulement claims.

Complaints against Judicial Conduct

In 2020, we saw a significant increase in the number of complaints against judges and judicial officers. The upsurge stemmed mainly from the large number of identical or similar complaints relating to court decisions dealing with social events. Such decisions involved the conviction or acquittal of defendants, sentencing or the grant or refusal of bail and other matters.

As stated earlier (under “Enhancing Transparency”), measures were taken to enhance transparency and to enable the more efficient handling of complaints.

Boards and Committees

The Chief Justice appointed judges and judicial officers and invited representatives from the legal profession and relevant government departments to sit on a number of boards and committees relating to the operation of the Judiciary. These boards and committees include the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee, Working Party on Mediation, Civil Court Users’ Committee, Criminal Court Users’ Committee, Family Proceedings Court Users’ Committee, Competition Tribunal Users’ Committee, and the Governing Body of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute.

Visits to the Judiciary

In view of the public health situation, visits to the Judiciary have been suspended since February 2020.

You are cordially invited to visit our Photo Gallery for various memorable moments of the Judiciary in 2020.

Highlights of Events in 2020

January
6	His Honour Judge Justin KO was appointed Chief District Judge
6	Mr SO Wai-tak was appointed Chief Magistrate
6	Miss LAU Suk-han, Mr Andrew MOK Tze-chung, Miss Frances LEUNG Nga-yan and Mr Arthur LAM Hei-wei were appointed Permanent Magistrates
13	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA officiated at the Ceremonial Opening of the Legal Year 2020
13	A five-member delegation led by Mr YANG Wanming, Vice-President of the Supreme People's Court, attended the Ceremonial Opening of the 2020 Legal Year

April
20	Ms Monica CHOW Wai-choo, Ms CHAK Kwok-yee, Mr LAM Chak-ming, Ms Eleanor YEUNG Yee-na, Miss Jo SIU Chi-wan, Mr LUNG Gwun-ting, Miss Minnie WAT Lai-man, Mr Peter YU Chun-cheung and Mr Jeffrey SZE Cho-yiu were appointed Permanent Magistrates

May
31	The terms of office of the Hon Mr Justice Robert FRENCH and the Rt Hon Lord REED of Allermuir, Non-Permanent Judges from other common law jurisdictions of the Court of Final Appeal, were extended for a period of three years

June
24	The Chief Executive signed the instrument of appointment of the Hon Mr Justice Andrew Cheung as the Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal with effect from January 11, 2021, and reported the appointment to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for the record, completing the relevant legal procedures for the appointment of the Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal
29	Miss Ada YIM Shun-yee, Mr Don SO Man-lung and Miss Ivy CHUI Yee-mei were appointed Principal Magistrates
29	Mr Dominic PUN Wang-hon was appointed Permanent Magistrate
30	The term of office of the Rt Hon the Lord COLLINS of Mapesbury, Non-Permanent Judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal, was extended for a period of three years

July
11	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA adjudicated the final round of the 9th Hong Kong Human Rights Moot

October
23	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered opening remarks at the session of “Hong Kong and its Role in International Arbitration” of the Alternative Dispute Resolution in Asia Conference: Redesigning International Arbitration
27	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech at the International Academy of Mediators – The Hong Kong Mediation Council Symposium

November
2	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech at the Opening of the Hong Kong Legal Week 2020 cum Opening of the Hong Kong Legal Hub and Launch of Vision 2030 for Rule of Law. The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, and the Hon Mr Justice Johnson LAM, Vice-President of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, also attended
3	The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, delivered closing remarks at the Inaugural Rule of Law Congress
10	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the International Bar Association 2020 - Virtually Together Conference
17	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA, the Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG, Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, and the Hon Mr Justice Jeremy POON, Chief Judge of the High Court, attended the Basic Law 30th Anniversary Legal Summit
19	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA was conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at the 51st Congregation of the Lingnan University. The Chief Justice delivered a speech on behalf of the honorary doctorates at the congregation
23	The Hon Mr Justice Russell A COLEMAN, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, attended the 1st Belt and Road Webinar titled “Look beyond COVID-19: Connect and Unite through Belt and Road and LawTech” organized by the Law Society of Hong Kong
26	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA delivered a speech at a speaker event of the Oxford Union

December
13	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Ceremony on the Nanjing Massacre National Memorial Day
23	The Hon Chief Justice Geoffrey MA attended the Opening Ceremony of Law Week and Teen Talk 2020

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 Joseph P FOK

The Hon Mr Justice Andrew CHEUNG

- 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

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, GBS

The Rt Hon the Lord NEUBERGER of Abbotsbury, GBS

The Rt Hon the Lord WALKER of Gestingthorpe, GBS

The Rt Hon the Lord COLLINS of Mapesbury

The Rt Hon the Lord CLARKE of Stone-cum-Ebony (up to 29.6.2020)

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 of Allermuir

The Rt Hon the Baroness HALE of Richmond

The Rt Hon Madam Justice Beverley McLACHLIN

The Rt Hon Lord SUMPTION

*	Left service in 2020

High Court

- Chief Judge of the High Court

The Hon Mr Justice S C POON

- 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 Andrew C MACRAE, V-P

The Hon Madam Justice Susan KWAN, V-P

The Hon Mr Justice Peter CHEUNG, JA

The Hon Madam Justice Maria C YUEN, JA

The Hon Madam Justice Carlye CHU, JA

The Hon Mr Justice Aarif T BARMA, JA

The Hon Mr Justice Ian C McWALTERS, JA

The Hon Mr Justice Derek PANG, JA

The Hon Mr Justice Kevin P ZERVOS, JA

The Hon Mr Justice H C AU, JA

- Judges of the Court of First Instance of the High Court

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 Jonathan R HARRIS

The Hon Mr Justice Mohan T BHARWANEY, SBS #

The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG

The Hon Mr Justice Patrick LI #

The Hon Madam Justice Esther TOH

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 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

The Hon Mr Justice S T POON

The Hon Madam Justice Marlene NG

The Hon Mr Justice W T LEE

The Hon Mr Justice Russell A COLEMAN

The Hon Mr Justice Keith YEUNG

The Hon Madam Justice C F CHAN

- Recorders of the Court of First Instance of the High Court

Mr POW Wing-nin, Jason, SC

Mr HOUGHTON Anthony Kenneth, SC

Ms TAM Wan-chi, Winnie, SBS, SC, JP

Mr WONG Kai-ming, Stewart, SC

Mr FUNG Ting-sek, Eugene, SC

Mr MANZONI Charles Peter, SC

Ms CHENG Wai-sum, Yvonne, SC

- Registrar, High Court

Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon

- Senior Deputy Registrar, High Court

Mr HO Chi-yin, Andy

#	Retired in 2020

District Court

- Chief District Judge

His Honour Judge Justin KO (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

- Principal Family Court Judge

His Honour Judge C K CHAN

- District Judges

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 Frankie YIU

His Honour Judge K W WONG

His Honour Judge Justin KO (up to 5.1.2020)

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 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

His Honour Judge Ernest M LIN

Her Honour Judge Adriana N TSE CHING

His Honour Judge K K PANG

His Honour Judge K C CHAN

Her Honour Judge Phoebe MAN

Lands Tribunal

- Members, Lands Tribunal

Mr PANG Ho-chuen, Lawrence

Mr NG Siu-lam, Alex

Magistrates' Courts and other Tribunals

- Chief Magistrate

Mr SO Wai-tak (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

- Principal Magistrates

Ms CHAINRAI Bina

Mr LAW Tak-chuen, Peter

Mr LUI Kin-man, Simon

Mr HO Chin-pang, Dick

Mr SO Wai-tak (up to 5.1.2020)

Miss YIM Shun-yee, Ada (w.e.f. 29.6.2020)

Mr SO Man-lung, Don (w.e.f. 29.6.2020)

Miss CHUI Yee-mei, Ivy (w.e.f. 29.6.2020)

- Magistrates

Miss YIM Shun-yee, Ada (up to 28.6.2020)

Mr MAK Kwok-cheung

Mr TO Ho-shing

Mr CHEANG Kei-hong

Mr SO Man-lung, Don (up to 28.6.2020)

Mr WONG Kwok-fai, Raymond

Ms CHAN Wai-mun

Miss CHOW Pok-fun, Josephine

Mr YIP Sue-pui, Lawrence

Mr WAN Siu-ming, Jason

Miss CHUI Yee-mei, Ivy (up to 28.6.2020)

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

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

Miss LAU Suk-han (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

Mr MOK Tze-chung, Andrew (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

Miss LEUNG Nga-yan, Frances (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

Mr LAM Hei-wei, Arthur (w.e.f. 6.1.2020)

Ms CHOW Wai-choo, Monica (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Ms CHAK Kwok-yee (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Mr LAM Chak-ming (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Ms YEUNG Yee-na, Eleanor (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Miss SIU Chi-wan, Jo (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Mr LUNG Gwun-ting (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Miss WAT Lai-man, Minnie (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Mr YU Chun-cheung, Peter (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Mr SZE Cho-yiu, Jeffrey (w.e.f. 20.4.2020)

Mr PUN Wang-hon, Dominic (w.e.f. 29.6.2020)

- Special Magistrates

Miss LAU Suk-han (up to 5.1.2020)

Mr MOK Tze-chung, Andrew (up to 5.1.2020)

Miss LEUNG Nga-yan, Frances (up to 5.1.2020)

Mr YU Chun-pong

Mr LAM Hei-wei, Arthur (up to 5.1.2020)

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 *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Applications for leave to appeal
Criminal	67	67	53	80 (35)	41 (22)	60 (42)
Civil	127	426	289	57 (40)	133 (110)	314 (261)
Total	194	493	342	137	174	374
Substantive appeals
Criminal	29	8	2	25	15	6
Civil	11	8	11	11	7	15
Total	40	16	13	36	22	21
Miscellaneous proceedings	0	0	1	0	0	1

*	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	2018	2019	2020
Applications for leave to appeal
From notice of hearing to hearing
Criminal	45	43	44	42
Civil	35	35	34	31
Substantive appeals
From notice of hearing to hearing
Criminal	100	98	98	98
Civil	120	111	113	93

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

High Court

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE HIGH COURT

scroll to view full table

	Caseload			Disposal *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
*Court of Appeal*
Appellate
Criminal
Appeals from the Court of First Instance	177	165	79	169	146	122
Appeals from the District Court	205	206	146	211	230	148
Sub-total	382	371	225	380	376	270
Civil
Appeals from the Court of First Instance	580	560	611	478	526	361
Appeals from the District Court	14	12	14	17	13	6
Miscellaneous Appeals	17	25	28	12	21	20
Sub-total	611	597	653	507	560	387
Review of Sentences
Criminal
Reviews from the Court of First Instance	0	0	0	0	0	0
Reviews from the District Court	5	4	2	2	4	3
Reviews from the Magistrates' Courts	1	1	14	0	1	9
Sub-total	6	5	16	2	5	12
Total	999	973	894	889	941	669
Miscellaneous Proceedings	204	321	263	178	203	217

*	Case disposal refers to appeals/reviews which have been allowed, dismissed, withdrawn, discontinued or abandoned with or without court order

scroll to view full table

	Caseload			Disposal *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Court of First Instance Appellate
Criminal
Appeals from Magistrates' Courts	620	603	428	555	585	444
Civil
Appeals from Labour Tribunal	30	23	23	27	21	23
Appeals from Small Claims Tribunal	63	45	48	56	43	26
Appeals from Minor Employment Claims Adjudication Board	3	4	2	1	5	2
Miscellaneous Appeals	3	4	5	5	2	2
Sub-total	99	76	78	89	71	53
Total	719	679	506	644	656	497
First Instance
Criminal Jurisdiction
Criminal Cases	421	424	366	433	446	241
Confidential Miscellaneous Proceedings	402	340	440	402	340	440
Application for Discharge	0	0	0	0	0	0
Miscellaneous Proceedings (Criminal)	789	684	772	686	655	763
Sub-total	1 612	1 448	1 578	1 521	1 441	1 444
Civil Jurisdiction
High Court Actions	3 010	2 431	2 200	1 709	1 519	1 266
Miscellaneous Proceedings	2 274	2 385	2 378	1 497	1 430	1 397
Bankruptcy & Companies Winding-up+	8 550	9 272	9 831	8 359	9 227	8 021
Personal Injuries Actions	1 307	506	540	1 408	1 335	506
Other cases^#	3 365	4 380	2 957	1 134	1 096	1 497
Sub-total	18 506	18 974	17 906	14 107	14 607	12 687
Total	20 118	20 422	19 484	15 628	16 048	14 131
Masters Chambers
Interlocutory hearings**	24 530	25 382	22 997	21 924	24 099	16 607
Taxation bills	638	547	561	486⁽¹⁾	418⁽¹⁾	429⁽¹⁾
Probate
Applications^~	20 797	21 005	16 521	19 886⁽²⁾	20 503⁽²⁾	16 592⁽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
⁺	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, Confidential Miscellaneous Proceedings (Civil) and Intellectual Property (a new case type created to capture intellectual property matters before the Court of First Instance with effect from 6 May 2019. Its caseload was formerly subsumed under High Court Actions or High Court Miscellaneous Proceedings and categorized under civil jurisdiction of the Court of First Instance)
^~	With effect from 1 January 2020, figure to include resealing application received
**	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

scroll to view full table

	Average Waiting Time (days)
	Target	2018	2019	2020
*Court of Appeal*
Criminal - from setting down of a case to hearing	50	49	49	55
Civil - from application to fix date to hearing	90	88	89	85
*Court of First Instance*
Criminal Fixture List - from filing of indictment to hearing*	-	167	167	349
Civil Fixture List - from application to fix date to hearing	180	168	173	166
Civil Running List - from not-to-be-warned date to hearing	30	38	29	28
Appeals from Magistrates' Courts - from lodging of Notice of Appeal to hearing	90	103	105	128

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 time 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 *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Application for Review	0	0	0	0	0	0
Enforcement Action	1	1	3	0	0	3
Action	2	0	0	0	0	0
Miscellaneous Proceedings	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	3	1	3	0	0	3

*	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 three 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 *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Criminal Jurisdiction
Criminal Cases	1 188	961	1 119	988	1 201	774
Civil Jurisdiction
Civil	6 067	7 053	7 037	4 649	4 977	4 810
Tax Claim	1 831	1 564	778	1 517	1 281	858
Distress for Rent	3 424	4 783	4 923	3 344	4 650	4 660
Employee's Compensation	3 038	3 046	2 659	3 008	2 869	2 542
Other civil cases +	7 093	9 496	8 756	5 709	4 792	3 990
Sub-total	21 453	25 942	24 153	18 227	18 569	16 860
Family Jurisdiction
Matrimonial Causes	16 458	15 393	12 363	14 933	15 223	11 023
Joint Applications	6 540	6 681	4 939	5 388	5 934	4 997
Miscellaneous Proceedings	275	262	215	244	236	204
Adoption Applications	72	50	68	55	45	52
Sub-total	23 345	22 386	17 585	20 620⁽¹⁾	21 438⁽¹⁾	16 276⁽¹⁾
Total (Civil)	44 798	48 328	41 738	38 847	40 007	33 136
Total	45 986	49 289	42 857	39 835	41 208	33 910
Masters Chambers
Interlocutory hearings**	7 683	10 382	9 744	6 634	7 988	6 283
Taxation bills
Divorce	941	823	611	870	766	603
Others	379	525	450	320	370	277
Sub-total	1 320	1 348	1 061	1 190⁽²⁾	1 136⁽²⁾	880⁽²⁾
Total	9 003	11 730	10 805	7 824	9 124	7 163

*	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	2018	2019	2020
Criminal - from first appearance of defendants in District Court to hearing	100	187	191	210
Civil Fixture List - from date of listing to hearing	120	95	95	105
Civil Running List - from not-to-be-warned date to hearing	30	16	21	28
Dissolution of marriage - from setting down of a case to hearing
Special Procedure List	35	35	35	35
Defended List (all hearings)	110	111	89	69
Financial applications - from setting down of a case to hearing	110-140	90	81	85

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Lands Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE LANDS TRIBUNAL

	Caseload			Disposal *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Appeal cases	313	1 472	789	370	493	759
Compensation cases	11	1	2	9	15	9
Building management cases	269	298	203	237	209	222
Tenancy cases	3 663	3 910	3 391	3 011	3 164	3 941
Lands compulsory sale applications	40	37	36	11	22	27
Miscellaneous proceedings applications	3	3	11	29	2	2
Total	4 299	5 721	4 432	3 667	3 905	4 960

*	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	2018	2019	2020
From setting down of a case to hearing
Appeal cases	90	20	35	39
Compensation cases	90	38	38	29
Building management cases	90	29	21	31
Tenancy cases	50	19	17	24

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Magistrates' Courts

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE MAGISTRATES' COURTS

	Caseload			Disposal*
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Charge Cases	30 221	25 798	22 436	29 607	25 405	21 354
Hawker Cases	1 628	1 216	1 192	1 626	1 204	1 189
Departmental & Private Summonses	175 738	170 156	144 040	174 693	170 625	135 466
Driving-Offence Points Summonses	2 240	2 277	1 631	2 251	2 218	1 611
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Traffic)	532	468	480	530	526	412
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Public Cleanliness and Obstruction)	72	97	89	77	96	83
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Smoking Offences)	24	21	11	26	21	20
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Vehicle Idling)	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Mandatory Window Inspection)	13	21	27	16	19	22
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Plastic Shopping Bag)	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fixed Penalty Summonses (Gathering Offence)^#	-	-	108	-	-	39
Miscellaneous Proceedings	11 052	10 869	9 131	10 857	10 650	9 240
Departmental Notice	676	636	655	636	654	614
Fixed Penalty Notice (Traffic)	115 045	117 497	133 975	110 020	129 843	121 068
Fixed Penalty Notice (Public Cleanliness and Obstruction)	2 388	2 542	2 402	2 335	2 610	2 355
Fixed Penalty Notice (Smoking Offences)	861	723	514	870	698	564
Fixed Penalty Notice (Vehicle Idling)	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fixed Penalty Notice (Mandatory Window Inspection)	122	425	236	79	417	251
Fixed Penalty Recovery Order (Plastic Shopping Bag)	0	0	2	0	0	2
Fixed Penalty Recovery Order (Gathering Offence)^#	-	-	175	-	-	130
Total	340 612	332 746	317 104	333 623	344 986	294 420

*	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
^#	New case types pursuant to section 6(1) of the Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation, Cap. 599G came into effect on 29 March 2020

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE MAGISTRATES' COURTS

	Average Waiting Time (days)
	Target	2018	2019	2020
Summonses - from plea to date of trial	50	76	67	75
Charge cases except for Juvenile Court - from plea to date of trial
For defendants in custody	30-45	47	41	45
For defendants on bail	45-60	57	51	67
Charge cases for Juvenile Court - from plea to date of trial
For defendants in custody	30-45	-*	30	13
For defendants on bail	45-60	58	58	60

*	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 *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Claims	3 955	4 323	3 533	3 607	4 143	2 990
Reviews	94	78	56	89	81	65
Restore claims	43	71	62	42	59	55
Set-aside awards	88	131	80	87	113	62
Total	4 180	4 603	3 731	3 825	4 396	3 172

*	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	2018	2019	2020
From appointment to filing of a case	30	25	29	61
From filing of a case to first hearing	30	25	25	23

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Small Claims Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE SMALL CLAIMS TRIBUNAL

	Caseload			Disposal*
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Claims	55 007	55 879	39 821	54 355	55 304	39 518
Reviews	208	189	162	203	170	175
Total	55 215	56 068	39 983	54 558	55 474	39 693

*	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	2018	2019	2020
From filing of a case to first hearing	60	33	36	41

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Obscene Articles Tribunal

CASELOAD AND CASE DISPOSAL OF THE OBSCENE ARTICLES TRIBUNAL

	Caseload			Disposal *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Articles for determination	9 073	21 081	14 024	9 073	21 081	14 024
Articles for classification	167	82	107	168	81	108
Articles for review	0	0	0	2	0	0
Articles for reconsideration	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total	9 240	21 163	14 131	9 243	21 162	14 132

*	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	2018	2019	2020
From referral by a magistrate to determination	21	22	15	10
From receipt of application to classification	5	3	2	3
From receipt of application to review	35	-^	-^	-^
From receipt of application to reconsideration	35	-*	-*	-*

^{^}	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 *
	2018	2019	2020	2018	2019	2020
Death inquests with jury	155	106	86	152	114	63
Death inquests without jury	12	11	12	9	16	10
Total	167	117	98	161	130	73

* Case disposal refers to death inquests concluded

AVERAGE WAITING TIME FOR CASES IN THE CORONER'S COURT

	Average Waiting Time (days)
	Target	2018	2019	2020
From date of listing to hearing	42	65	61	70

Membership List of the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee (Up to 31.3.2020)¹

- Chairman	Chief Judge, High Court
- Members	The Hon Mr Justice H C AU, JA Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Mohan T BHARWANEY, SBS 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	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
- Secretary	Ms Winnie WONG Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)1

¹ The Committee was dissolved on 1.4.2020. The Committee has been monitoring the work of the reformed civil justice system for ten years. Findings and statistics on the implementation of the Civil Justice Reform (“CJR”) from 2009 to 2019 were published every year on the CJR webpage. On the whole, the implementation of CJR continues to be smooth and satisfactory, and the relevant reforms have become a normal part of civil procedures. The greater use of mediation, more sanctioned payments and more summary assessment of costs are particularly seen as the effective outcomes of the CJR.

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 Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG 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
	The Hon Madam Justice K Y WONG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court
	His Honour Judge Justin KO Chief District Judge
	His Honour Judge C K CHAN Principal Family Court Judge
	Mr Clifford TAVARES Department of Justice
	Mr Chris CHONG Legal Aid Department
	Ms Elaine LIU
	Mrs Cecilia WONG
	Mr CHAN Bing-woon, SBS, JP
	Professor LEUNG Hing-fung
- In Attendance	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
	Ms April LAM Chief Judiciary Executive (Mediation Affairs)
- Secretary	Mr Ernest TSANG Mediation Co-ordinator

Membership List of the Court Users' Committees

Civil Court Users' Committee

- Chairman	The Hon Madam Justice Queeny AU-YEUNG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
- Members	The Hon Madam Justice Mimmie CHAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Russell A COLEMAN Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court
	His Honour Judge Justin KO Chief District Judge
	Ms Leona CHEUNG Department of Justice
	Mr Steve WONG Legal Aid Department (up to 17.3.2020)
	Mr Ben LI Legal Aid Department (w.e.f. 18.3.2020)
	Ms Ophelia LOK Official Receiver's Office
	Mr Paul SHIEH, SC
	Mr Brian W. GILCHRIST
	Dr Anna YIP
- In Attendance	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
	Mr Joe CHENG Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 (up to 30.11.2020)
	Ms Terri TANG Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judge)2 (w.e.f. 1.12.2020)
- 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 Albert WONG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Keith YEUNG Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court
	His Honour Judge Justin KO Chief District Judge
	Mr SO Wai-tak, Victor Chief Magistrate
	Mr Paul HO Department of Justice
	Ms Juliana O Y CHAN Legal Aid Department (up to 7.12.2020)
	Ms MO Yuk-wah Legal Aid Department (w.e.f. 8.12.2020)
	Ms Grace WONG The Duty Lawyer Service
	Mr HO Kwok-keung, Simon Independent Commission Against Corruption (up to 20.12.2020)
	Mr CHOI Shu-keung Independent Commission Against Corruption (w.e.f. 21.12.2020)
	Mr CHAN Wing-on, Francis Hong Kong Police Force (up to 1.4.2020)
	Ms TSANG Yim-sheung, Anna Hong Kong Police Force (w.e.f. 2.4.2020)
	Mr NG Chiu-kok Correctional Services Department
	Mr Graham HARRIS, SC
	Mr Kenneth NG
	Mr Rex SHAM
- In Attendance	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
	Mr Calvin YAU Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 (up to 3.11.2020)
	Miss Pauline WW KWOK Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 (w.e.f. 4.11.2020)
- 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
	The Hon Madam Justice B. CHU Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
	Mr KWANG Cheok-weung, Simon Registrar, High Court
	His Honour Judge C K CHAN Principal Family Court Judge
	His Honour Judge Ivan WONG Family Court Judge
	Mr Simon LUI Registrar, District Court
	Ms PANG Kit-ling Social Welfare Department
	Miss CHAN Dao-kit, Doreen Legal Aid Department
	Mr LI Chi-keung, Ben Official Solicitor's Office (up to 12.5.2020)
	Mr CHAN Mau-kwan, Jason Official Solicitor's Office (w.e.f. 13.5.2020)
	Ms Corinne REMEDIOS
	Mr Dennis HO
	Ms Jain BROWN
- In Attendance	Ms Wendy CHEUNG Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)
	Ms Jolly LAM 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 Andrew CHEUNG Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal
	The Hon Mr Justice Jeremy POON Chief Judge of the High Court
	The Hon Mr Justice Tony POON Judge with special responsibility for the Executive Body of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute
	His Honour Judge Justin KO Chief District Judge
	Mr SO Wai-tak Chief Magistrate
	Miss Emma LAU Judiciary Administrator (up to 15.7.2020)
	Ms Esther LEUNG Judiciary Administrator (w.e.f. 20.7.2020)

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 [up to 15.7.2020]
Ms Esther LEUNG, Judiciary Administrator [w.e.f. 20.7.2020]

Operations Division

Ms Wendy CHEUNG, Acting Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Operations)

(a)	Information Technology Office (Technical)	Ms Candy CHAN	Chief Systems Manager (Information Technology)
		Mr Kenneth CHAN	Senior Systems Manager (1) [up to 8.9.2020]
		Mr Patrick LAI	Acting Senior Systems Manager (1) [w.e.f. 9.9.2020]
		Mr Jones TAM	Acting Senior Systems Manager (2) [up to 28.6.2020]
		Mr Jones TAM	Senior Systems Manager (2) [w.e.f. 29.6.2020]
		Mr Alex LEE	Senior Systems Manager (3)
		Mr Alex TAI	Acting Senior Systems Manager (4) [up to 28.6.2020]
		Mr Alex TAI	Senior Systems Manager (4) [w.e.f. 29.6.2020]
(b)	Information Technology Office (Operational)	Mr Harry TSANG	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Quality and Information Technology)^{Note 1}
		Mr Brian CHIU	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office) [up to 7.1.2020]
		Mr Brian CHIU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office) [w.e.f. 8.1.2020]
		Ms Eva LEE	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)1
		Ms Carol FUNG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)2 [up to 25.11.2020]
		Mr Wilson LEUNG	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)2 [w.e.f. 26.11.2020]
		Ms Wendy SHUM	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)3
		Mr Barry LEE	Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)4
		Ms Cynthia LOK	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Information Technology Office)5 [w.e.f. 9.1.2020]
(c)	Operations Division	Ms Nancy MAK	Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Operations) [up to 5.1.2020]
		Ms Nancy MAK	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Operations) [w.e.f. 6.1.2020]
		Ms Winifred CHAN	Chief Judiciary Executive (Operations)
(d)	Support to Judges Section	Ms Hedy WU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)1
		Mr Joe CHENG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 [up to 30.11.2020]
		Ms Terri TANG	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)2 [w.e.f. 1.12.2020]
		Mr Calvin YAU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 [up to 3.11.2020]
		Ms Pauline KWOK	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Support to Judges)3 [w.e.f. 4.11.2020]
(e)	Clerk of Court's Office	Ms Terri TANG	Clerk of Court [up to 30.11.2020]
		Ms Twinky LO	Acting Clerk of Court [temporarily taking up the duties of Clerk of Court from 1.12.2020 to 31.3.2021]
(f)	Court of Final Appeal Registry	Ms Theresa AU	Acting Senior Judicial Clerk I (Court of Final Appeal) [up to 18.10.2020]
		Ms Jo CHOW	Senior Judicial Clerk I (Court of Final Appeal) [w.e.f. 19.10.2020]
(g)	High Court Registry	Ms Catherine LI	Chief Judicial Clerk (High Court Registry) [up to 25.11.2020]
		Ms Carol FUNG	Chief Judicial Clerk (High Court Registry) [w.e.f. 26.11.2020]
(h)	Competition Tribunal Registry	Ms Priscilla WONG	Senior Judicial Clerk I (Competition Tribunal)
(i)	District Court	Ms Anny TAM	Chief Judicial Clerk (Registry, District Court)
		Ms Clare TSANG	Chief Judicial Clerk (Courts, District Court)
(j)	Family Court Registry	Ms Jolly LAM	Acting Chief Judicial Clerk (Family Court)
(k)	Lands Tribunal Registry	Ms Amy LEUNG	Acting Chief Judicial Clerk (Lands Tribunal)
(l)	Magistrates' Courts General Office	Ms Pauline KWOK	Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) [up to 3.11.2020]
		Ms Alice YIP	First Clerk (Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts) [temporarily sharing the duties of Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) from 4.11.2020 to 20.12.2020]
		Mr Jack SUEN	First Clerk (Eastern Magistrates' Courts) [temporarily sharing the duties of Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) from 4.11.2020 to 20.12.2020]
		Ms Phoebe HUNG	First Clerk (West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts) [temporarily sharing the duties of Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) from 4.11.2020 to 20.12.2020]
		Ms Susanna FONG	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) [temporarily taking up the duties of Senior Judiciary Executive (Magistracies) from 21.12.2020 to 31.3.2021]
(m)	Probate Registry	Ms Memory WONG	Chief Probate Officer
(n)	Labour Tribunal Registry	Mr Jackson CHAN	Registrar (Labour Tribunal) [up to 5.10.2020]
		Ms Elizabeth LEE	Acting Registrar (Labour Tribunal) [temporarily taking up the duties of Registrar (Labour Tribunal) from 6.10.2020 to 31.3.2021]
(o)	Small Claims Tribunal Registry	Ms Wendy CHUI	Acting Chief Judicial Clerk (Small Claims Tribunal)
(p)	Court Language Section	Mr Brian YAU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)1 [up to 3.5.2020]
		Ms Vivien WONG	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)1 [w.e.f. 4.5.2020]
		Ms Millia TANG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)2
		Ms Patience IP	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)3 [up to 2.5.2020]
		Mr Brian YAU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Court Language)3 [w.e.f. 4.5.2020]
(q)	Bailiff Section	Ms FL CHIM	Chief Bailiff (Administration and Admiralty)
		Mr T S YU	Chief Bailiff (Operations)
(r)	Mediation Section	Ms April LAM	Chief Judiciary Executive (Mediation Affairs)
		Mr Ernest TSANG	Acting Mediation Coordinator

Development Division

Ms Patricia SO, Deputy Judiciary Administrator (Development) cum Administrative Assistant to the Chief Justice

(a)	Chief Justice's Private Office	Mr Dominic CHOW	Deputy Administrative Assistant to the Chief Justice [w.e.f. 20.11.2020]
(b)	Development Office	Ms Winnie WONG	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)1
		Mr David LAU	Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Development)2
(c)	Press & Public Relations Office	Ms Daisy KWOK	Acting Chief Information Officer (Judiciary)
(d)	Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct	Ms Vivian WAH	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct) [up to 7.1.2020]
		Ms Vivian WAH	Chief Judiciary Executive (Secretariat for Complaints against Judicial Conduct) [w.e.f. 8.1.2020]

Quality Division

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

(a)	Complaints Office	Mr Vincent NG	Acting Senior Judiciary Executive (Complaints)
(b)	Digital Audio Recording and Transcription Services Section	Ms Peggy LAI	Acting Chief Judiciary Executive (Digital Audio Recording and Transcription Services)
(c)	Legal Reference and Library Section	Ms Miranda FUNG	Senior Judiciary Executive (Legal Reference and Library)
(d)	Management Review and Information Section	Ms Prudence CHAN	Chief Judiciary Executive (Management Review and Information)

Corporate Services Division

Mr Jock TAM, Acting Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Corporate Services) [up to 5.1.2020]
Mr Jock TAM, Assistant Judiciary Administrator (Corporate Services) [w.e.f. 6.1.2020]

(a)	Project Planning and Accommodation Section	Mr Francis CHENG	Principal Executive Officer (Project Planning and Accommodation)
(b)	Finance Section	Mr Desmond LAM	Acting Chief Treasury Accountant [up to 26.8.2020]
		Mr Desmond LAM	Chief Treasury Accountant [w.e.f. 27.8.2020]
(c)	Judges and Judicial Officers Section	Ms Queenie LEUNG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Judges and Judicial Officers)
(d)	Support Staff Section	Ms Ivy TANG	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support Staff) [up to 27.9.2020]
		Mr Kelvin SIU	Chief Judiciary Executive (Support Staff) [w.e.f. 28.9.2020]

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

During the General Adjourned Period, court proceedings were adjourned due to COVID-19 concerns. In view of public health considerations arising from COVID-19, most judicial training activities organised by the Hong Kong Judicial Institute, as well as those organised with/by other jurisdictions/organizations were postponed or cancelled in this period.

For this period, the work of the Hong Kong Judicial Institute in the form of research support and publications for judges and judicial officers continued.

Local Judicial Training Activities Organised by the Hong Kong Judicial Institute

Date	Activity
8.1.2020	Training course on legal research
18.3.2020	Training on e-Lodgment Platform for High Court judges
19.3, 27.4, 20.5, 7.7, 18.8 & 5.11.2020	Induction briefings for Deputy Magistrates / Adjudicators
20.3.2020	Sharing session on case management by the Hon Madam Justice Anthea PANG, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
8 – 9.4.2020	Demonstration session on conducting remote hearing using video-conferencing facilities
5.5.2020	Training on digital evidence and exhibit handling
29 – 30.6.2020	Induction course for newly appointed Permanent Magistrates 2020
3.7.2020	Talk entitled “Judicial Impartiality and Public Confidence” by the Hon Mr Justice Albert WONG, Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court
7.8.2020	Training on Integrated Court Case Management System for Magistrates
11.9, 16.9 & 25.9.2020	Intervisioning sessions of case management workshop
14.9.2020	Competition Law Seminar
15.10.2020	Integrated use of courtroom information technology for hearing
13.11.2020	Introduction to the Family Court
19.11.2020	Training on the integrated use of courtroom IT for e-hearing/ trials

Number of Visits and Visitors to the Judiciary

	2019	2020 ^*
Local
No. of visits	293	3
No. of visitors	9 254	93
The Mainland
No. of visits	26	0
No. of visitors	541	0
Overseas
No. of visits	18	7
No. of visitors	206	23
Total
No. of visits	337	10
No. of visitors	10 001	116

	Number of Visitors
Category of Visitors	2019	2020 ^*
Judges and legal profession	418	0
Government officials	104	12
Students and others	9 479	104
Total	10 001	116

* In view of public health situation, visit to the court premises has been suspended since February 2020.

Expenditure and Revenue of the Judiciary in 2019-20

Recurrent Expenditure

	2019-2020 ($' 000)
- Personal Emoluments	1,309,943
- Departmental Expenses	613,849
- Other Charges	8,778
Total	1,932,570

Revenue*

	2019-2020 ($' 000)
- Fees & Charges	196,763
- Fines	234,730
- Forfeitures & Others	93,591
Total	525,084

* 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				2020 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	2020 Total
Chief Justice	3	123ⁱⁱ	4 286ⁱⁱⁱ	7	4 419
Chief Judge of the High Court	20	0	0	NA	20
Chief District Judge	13	1	2	NA	16
Chief Magistrate	992^iv	1	111^v	NA	1 104
Sub-total	1 028	125	4 399	7	5 559

* If a Court Leader considers it inappropriate for him/her to handle a complaint as this may lead to any real or perceived conflict of interest, he/she may instruct another judge to handle the complaint.

Notes:
i	During the period under report, there has been a marked increase in the number of complaints against Judges and Judicial Officers (JJOs). This is owing to the surge in the number of identical or similar complaints against JJOs in relation to certain court decisions and court cases. In 2020, a total of 5 559 complaints have been disposed of. Among which, 5 488 are related to those identical or similar complaints. In accordance with the cardinal principle of judicial independence, complaints against judicial or statutory decisions cannot and will not be dealt with. Any dissatisfaction with judicial or statutory decisions can only be dealt with by way of appeal or review through existing legal procedures.
ii	Identical or similar complaints related to one court case.
iii	Identical or similar complaints related to one court case.
iv	Including 983 identical or similar complaints relating to 70 court cases.
v	Including 96 identical or similar complaints related to one court case.
vi	The total number of cases filed in 2020 is 460 003.
vii	Complaint related to judicial conduct can be broadly classified according to their nature. Among complaints involving judicial conduct above, 8 complaints are related to attitude and behavior in court, 4 510 are related to handling of actual proceedings in court, 1 is related to conduct not directly related to court work and 5 related to mixed nature.
viii	Among the complaint cases related to judicial conduct, there is one partially justified case (i.e. the case indicated under Note iii). The complaints were that the District Judge’s comments in the Reasons for Sentence gave rise to a perception of bias. The Chief Justice has looked into the case. Judges and judicial officers must not be biased nor, just as important, be reasonably perceived to be biased for or against any persons or causes. The concerned Reasons for Sentence caused controversy in that there is a risk that some reasonable, fair-minded and well informed persons could reasonably take the view that the aforesaid principles might have been compromised in that a wrong perception was given. The Chief Justice had reminded the relevant judge of these important principles mentioned above in discharging judicial duties. It was decided that the relevant Judge should not for the time being deal with cases involving a similar political context.
ix	The above table only reports the number of those identical or similar complaints that were fully disposed of. For those identical or similar complaints involving complaints against more than one court case and the outcome of investigation regarding complaints of one or more court case(s) are to be provided upon the completion of all relevant court proceedings and conclusion of investigation, such statistics will be reported upon full disposal of complaints of all court case(s). The number of complaints disposed of only include complaints with the provision of the obligatory information (correspondence addresses and names).

Complaints against the Judiciary Administration

Nature of Complaints	2020*
- Complaints about procedures	16
- Complaints about facilities	3
- Complaints about the judicial support services	52
- Complaints against staff of the Judiciary Administration	29
Total	100

* Oral complaints included

Last Update Date : 24-02-2021

Review of 2020

Facing Challenges from COVID-19 epidemic

Enhancing Transparency

Appointment of Judges and Judicial Officers

Appointment of Judiciary Administrator

Greater Use of Information Technology (“IT”)

Caseload

Complaints against Judicial Conduct

Boards and Committees

Visits to the Judiciary

Highlights of Events in 2020

List of Judges and Judicial Officers

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Caseload, Case Disposal and Waiting Time at Different Court Levels

Membership List of the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee (Up to 31.3.2020)1

Membership List of the Working Party on Mediation

Membership List of the Court Users' Committees

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

Judiciary Administration

Judicial Training

Number of Visits and Visitors to the Judiciary

Expenditure and Revenue of the Judiciary in 2019-20

Complaints against Judges and Judicial Officers

Complaints against the Judiciary Administration

Membership List of the Civil Justice Reform Monitoring Committee (Up to 31.3.2020)¹