the immediate translation and publication of such titles without first waiting for the translation of the Ordinances and subsidiary legislation.
(iv) Pleadings
The Sub-committee considers that pleadings in the Chinese language made by litigants who are not legally represented should be accepted in all the Courts (including the Tenancy Tribunals and quasi-judicial bodies) subject to the Court's power to order a certified translation thereof at Government's expense, e.g. for the purposes of appeals, and that in case of discrepancy, the original shall prevail. The Sub-committee recommends that His Excellency the Governor should invite the Honourable the Chief Justice to consider these views.
(v) Chinese documents as evidence in Court
By Rule 56 of the District Court Civil Procedures (General) Rules 1963 it is provided that 'Notwithstanding any rules of practice the Court may dispense with a certified translation of any document adduced in evidence and not being in the English language.' We recommend that His Excellency the Governor should invite the Legislature and the Honourable the Chief Justice to consider the insertion of a similar provision in the Magistrates Ordinance, the Landlord and Tenant Ordinance, Juvenile Offenders Ordinance, and also those Ordinances and subsidiary legislation governing quasi-judicial bodies of compara- ble or lower ranks.
Under the present law, judges, jurors, and lawyers are not allowed to use their own knowledge of the Chinese language in considering a Chinese document. They must rely on the English translation. If the certified translation correctly reproduces the original as it should, then there cannot be any overwhelming objection to the original and the translation being considered together. The Sub-committee therefore recommends that His Excellency the Governor should invite the Legislature to con- sider an amendment to the present law so as to permit the con- sideration of both the original document and its translation. The Sub-committee further recommends that, certified translations of Chinese documents, for the purpose of all judicial proceedings, when required, should be prepared at Government's expense. (vi) Judgments and orders
Parties in judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings are clearly affected by judgments and orders. The Sub-committee considers that a Chinese translation of all written orders made in the District
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Court, Magistrates Courts, Tenancy Tribunals, Juvenile Courts, and quasi-judicial bodies of comparable or lower ranks should be supplied when required by any of the parties. In case of dis- crepancy the English version shall prevail. As to written judg- ments, it will often be extremely difficult to make a Chinese translation which is absolutely correct and it will also be very time consuming. The Sub-committee therefore considers that, at the request of a party, the presiding official may, in his discretion, order à translation of the full judgment, or a summary in English thereof be prepared by the court clerk and approved by the pre- siding official. The court translator shall then make a certified translation accordingly which will be supplied to the party. The Sub-committee therefore recommends that His Excellency the Governor should invite the Honourable the Chief Justice to con- sider the views set out in this sub-paragraph.
(vii) Court records
These are mostly resorted to by court officials and lawyers and only on rare occasions by members of the public. The Sub- committee therefore does not consider that there is any need to change the present system of keeping court records in English. (viii) Correspondence between the Courts and Chinese speaking
members of the public
Although a part of such correspondence is already conducted in Chinese or in English with a Chinese translation, it does not appear that there is at the present moment any standard practice in this regard. The Sub-committee considers that most of the cor- respondence with members of the public may be conducted just as effectively in the Chinese language as in the English language. Some may be conducted entirely in the Chinese language; e.g. notices of change of trial dates. Some are more technical and may be written in both English and Chinese with the English as the prevailing version, if necessary. The Sub-committee therefore recommends that His Excellency the Governor should invite the Honourable the Chief Justice to consider these views.
(ix) Correspondence between staff within the Judiciary and between the
Judiciary and Government departments
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The Sub-committee sees no advantage in altering the present practice of conducting such correspondence in English. We have been given to understand that within the Judiciary most com- munications with the non-English speaking staff are conducted orally, either directly in Chinese or through an interpreter, and that their written communications in Chinese are accepted and replies would be given in English with a Chinese translation.
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