Mr Rushford
Mr Stuart
CONFIDENTIAL
Reference... HKK..14/7.
ર
Mr Crowson
Mrs. Jansence
FORD
APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES IN HONG KONG
1. The Governor has not sent us his formal
recommendation for the post of Senior Puisne Judgeship which has become vacant as a result of the departure on pre-retirement leave of Sir Alastair Blair-Kerr. He recommends that the vacancy should be filled by the promotion of Mr Pickering and that the subsequent vacancy for a Puisne Judge should be filled by the promotion of Mr E G Baber, District Judge.
2. I have sent the top copy of the despatch to the ODA for submission in the standard form. The formal notification of these vacancies was not enclosed with the Governor's despatch (his last paragraph) and I have sent a telegram to Hong Kong asking for them.
P.M. Kelly
P M Kelly (Miss) Hong Kong & Indian Ocean Department
14
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1.24
1.
So far as I am concerned, the Governor's despatch of
7 January contains two surprises.
2.
to
As the vacant post of Senior Puisne Judge, it recommends Mr Pickering in preference to Mr Huggins and Mr McMullin, although the other two are senior to him - the relevant dates are as follows:
Date of birth
15. 5.1921 11.11.1922
Date of first appointment
2.2.1951 26.10.1950
Date of present appointment
12. 2.1965
Huggins
McMullin
Pickering:
4.12.1915
19. 8.1955
10. 2.1969
10. 6.1970
3. The post of Senior Puisne Judge in Hong Kong is rather an odd one. The reason for its existence is to provide someone who would normally be appointed to act as Chief Justice when the sub- stantive Chief Justice was on leave, thus avoiding the need to choose a particular judge to act on each occasion when the Chief
/Justice
CONFIDENTIAT.