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Mr Wood
Enter (all) and by one week pl
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Hong Kong Department
WH 304
FUTURE OF HONG KONG:
1.
From:
D M Edwards
Legal Advisers
Date: 3 July 1989
VARIOUS LEGAL ISSUES
I
In my minute of 20 June I addressed various of these issues. referred to the problem of the five bilateral reciprocal enforcement of judgements conventions with certain members of the European Community which were extended to Hong Kong but which may have been superseded (as far as Hong Kong is concerned) by our adherence to the 1968 Brussels Convention.
2.
I attach two minutes (dated 26 June and 27 June respectively) from Mr MacLeod on this. You will see that he concludes that, while the matter is not free from doubt, the five bilateral conventions continue to have effect so far as Hong Kong is concerned. Mr MacLeod records his telephone conversation
with Mr Gladwell of the Lord Chancellor's
Department and the latter (although for the wrong reasons) shares Mr MacLeod's views.
3.
Where do we go from here? I have suggested to Mr MacLeod that he should ask the Lord Chancellor's Department to let us have their views on this in writing. It is never satisfactory to have views on matters as complicated as this conveyed telephonically. When we have received the written views of the Lord Chancellor's Department, I suggest that you send the UK's views (hopefully a clear distillation of FCO and LCD opinions will be possible) to Hong Kong as promised in the last sentence of paragraph 2 of Mr Smith's letter of 18 November 1987 to Norman Chan. It will then be up to Hong Kong to form views as to what they want and to decide how they wish to proceed, bearing in mind the steps that will have to be taken and which are set out in paragraph 8 et seq of Mr Steel's minute of 15 June 1987 which has already been copied to Hong Kong. At some point there will have to be contact with the five European governments concerned if Hong Kong wishes to continue the existing arrangements for reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgements with them.
4.
The other problem I addressed in my minute of 20 June related to arrangements after 1997 between the UK and Hong Kong on civil law and civil procedural problems, including reciprocal enforcement of judgements (paragraph 4 of Mr Smith's letter of 18 November 1987 to Norman Chan). Mr MacLeod has addressed this in his minute dated 26 June to Mr Monk (NTD). I attach a copy.
Action rests with NTD and LCD but we should clearly keep the pressure up for progress to be made. In the meantime, when you write to Stephen Bradley in Hong Kong as suggested in paragraph 3 above (and as a follow-up to your letter to him of 10 February 1989) you could say that we are now working on this and will be in touch soon.
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Mr MacLeod, Legal Advisers
Mr Paul, HKD
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David M Edwards K161
270 3058
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