The Legal System | 29
in service immediately before July 1, 1997 were reappointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR. All judicial proceedings that had been instituted before July 1, 1997 were continued by virtue of the Hong Kong Reunification Ordinance.
Law in the HKSAR
The laws in force in the HKSAR are:
(1) the Basic Law;
(2) national laws listed in Annex III to the Basic Law;
(3) the laws in force before July 1, 1997 that were adopted as laws of the
HKSAR by the Standing Committee of the NPC; and
(4) laws enacted by the legislature of the HKSAR.
National laws relating to defence and foreign affairs, as well as other matters outside the limits of the HKSAR's autonomy, may be applied locally by way of promulgation or legislation by the HKSAR. Currently, 11 national laws apply in the HKSAR.
All ordinances in force in the HKSAR are bilingual, and their Chinese and English texts are equally authentic. Those ordinances, and the subsidiary legislation made under them, are published in both a hard-copy loose-leaf edition and in electronic form freely available on the Internet. All new legislation is published in the Government Gazette.
Court Challenges under the Basic Law
Since the Basic Law came into effect on July 1, 1997, Hong Kong has, for the first time, a detailed written constitution. Litigants are able to base their arguments on provisions of the Basic Law and challenge actions that they believe are inconsistent with them.
Legal challenges based on the Basic Law have been launched in a wide variety of cases. One significant group of cases focused on the right of abode in Hong Kong of various categories of persons. Other constitutional challenges have included the right to use the Chinese language in courts, the freedom to travel and enter the HKSAR, the power of final adjudication of the Court of Final Appeal, the right to legal representation and freedom of speech and assembly. The gradual development of a body of jurisprudence on the Basic Law serves to reinforce its effectiveness in determining the rights, obligations, powers and privileges guaranteed to the people of Hong Kong.
Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Arbitration has been a popular method of dispute resolution in the HKSAR for some time. It is governed by the Arbitration Ordinance, which has two distinct regimes a domestic regime derived from English law and an international regime which reflects the UNCITRAL Model Law, the model law adopted by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law.