MR FIFOOT
Reference
HKK 14/6
A
31
HONG KONG: JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS
29
Nur coped A HKKI4/48
May we please discuss Miss Daw's minute of 13 June below?
2. I should perhaps record that, in the course of an informal conversation on 26 June with Mr. Sneath, Solicitor-General, Hong Kong (who does not wish to be quoted), I gathered the following:-
(a) there is some doubt when the present Chief Justice (Rigby)
will in fact relinquish the duties of his office. He is due to vacate the office on his 62 birthday. (2 June 1973)
but has considerable accumulation of accrued leave, so
that he could depart from Hong Kong on terminal leave at a
considerably earlier date:
(b) Mr. Sneath (and perhaps also Mr. Roberts, the Attorney-
General) has considerable reservations about the desira-
bility of appointing Mr. Jackson-Lipkin to one of the two
High Court vacancies and feels that it would be desirable, if possible, for whoever is to succeed Rigby to have a say
in the matter.
(c) Mr. Sneath at any rate thinks that the appointment would
produce a strong reaction from the legal and judicial
members of the public service.
(d) If Mr. Roberts is to become the next Chief Justice Mr.
Sneath would hope to succeed him as Attorney-General.
If not, Mr. Sneath would wish to be considered for appoint-
ment to the Supreme Court, preferably for one of the two present vacancies (I am not clear whether, if appointed to the Supreme Court Mr. Sneath would take seniority among the
members of the Court from the date of his appointment to
that court or having regard to his service as Solicitor-
General from some earlier date he was appointed Solicitor- General with effect from 3 September 1966). This is evidently
a factor in Mr. Sneath's desire to be considered for one of
the two existing vacancies if Mr. Roberts is not to become
Chief Justice in succession to Rigby.
/(e)
DD 897152 154596 500M 2/72 GM 3643/2