BAR
HONG KONG BAR
KONG BAR ASSOCIATION
CHAIRMAN;
GERALD DE BASTO, Q.C.
SECRETARY:
HENRY LITTON
SECRETARY'S CHAMBERS
732 PRINCE'S BUILDING
HONG KONG
TELEPHONE: H-230425
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Sir James McPetrie, K.C.M.G., O.B.E., Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London, S.W.1.,
England.
Dear Meletric,
7th May, 1970
Re: Appointments to the Bench from the Bar in Hong Kong
As you know, in the United Kingdom,
there is no promotion in respect of the Judiciary:
"While speaking of the independence of judges,
there is another factor which must not be overlooked. We have no system of promotion of judges in England. Once a man becomes a judge, he has nothing to gain from further promotion and does not seek it. The judges of the Supreme Court are all paid the same, no matter whether they sit to try cases at first instance or whether they sit in the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal is made up mostly of men who have been judges of first instance. A man who accepts the office of a judge in England must reckon that he will stay in that position always. He has taken it on as his life work and must stand by it. This is the same whether he is a High Court Judge or a County Court judge or a stipendiary magistrate. Each normally stays where he is throughout his judicial career. The reason is that we think that the decisions of a judge should not be influenced by the hope of promotion. By contrast the constant hope of the newly appointed French judge is to improve his
2/.....
BAR COMMITTEE
GERALD DE BASTO, Q.C.
•
S. V. GITTINS, Q.C.
►
D. A. L. WRIGHT
ROBERT WEI
•
MARTIN C. M. LEE
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