THE LEGAL SYSTEM
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Marks Ordinance and the Registration of Patents Ordinance. The Insurance Division provides prudential supervision, under the provisions of the Insurance Companies Ordin- ance, over insurance companies carrying on insurance business in, or from, Hong Kong, and the Insolvency Division provides an insolvency service to the private sector as trustee in bankruptcy and liquidator in companies winding-up.
The Registrar General is also an ex-officio member of the Insurance Advisory Committee and the Standing Committee on Company Law Reform, and represents the Financial Secre- tary as an ex-officio member of the Council of the Hong Kong Society of Accountants.
Legal Aid
Hong Kong has developed over the years a very comprehensive system of legal aid, emphasising the government's continuing desire and effort to promote social justice. Legal aid is provided by the government through two organisations. The Legal Aid Department administers highly sophisticated and extensive legal aid schemes for legal representation in both civil and criminal cases heard in District Courts and the High Court. Such aid is available to any person in Hong Kong, resident or non-resident, who satisfies the Director of Legal Aid on financial eligibility and justification for legal action. The Law Society of Hong Kong, through an executive committee which includes representatives from the Bar Association, provides free legal advice and free legal representation to defendants in certain criminal cases heard in the Magistrates' Courts and Juvenile Courts of Hong Kong.
Civil Legal Aid
The financial limits in both civil and criminal cases undertaken by the Legal Aid Department are the same. At present, persons who have a disposable monthly income of not more than $2,200, and a disposable capital of not more $15,000, are financially eligible. Disposable income and capital are arrived at after 'allowances', including rent, have been deducted from actual earnings and capital of applicants. Legal aid is provided either free or on payment of a contribution, depending on the amount of the disposable income and capital. In addition to financial eligibility, the applicant must satisfy the Director of Legal Aid in civil cases that he has a reasonable chance of succeeding in the litigation for which he seeks aid and in recovering the judgement debt thereafter. Legal aid is available for a wide range of civil proceedings in the District Courts, High Court, Court of Appeal and appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London. Traffic accident claims, landlord and tenant disputes, claims in respect of industrial accidents and employees compensation, immigration matters, breach of contract, professional negligence and every branch of family law are included in the civil aid scheme. Other cases such as admiralty, bankruptcy and companies winding-up proceedings are also undertaken, the majority of which deal among other things with employees' wages and severance pay. An applicant who is refused legal aid may appeal against such refusal to the Registrar of the Supreme Court or in Privy Council cases to a committee of review.
The total estimated expenditure for 1989-90 was $47 million in civil cases. In 1989, 15 205 applications were received and 4 607 granted. A sum of $159 million was recovered for the aided clients in these cases. If a legally-aided person in civil litigation is successful and legal costs are recovered in the proceedings, any contribution he may have paid may be refunded to him. In unsuccessful litigation, the liability for costs of a legally-aided person is limited to the amount of contribution, if any, paid by him.
There is a spiralling divorce rate in Hong Kong and an independent counselling agency is provided by the Hong Kong Catholic Marriage Advisory Council whereby applicants