No. 1.
C.O. --9332
Claribers,
Rece 142
Rec 17 MAR 09
Supreme Court, Hongkong,
20th January, 1909.
845/08
I have the honour to acknowledge Your Excellency's letter of 11th January, enclosing a copy of a despatch from the Secretary of State, dated 30th December, in connexion with the letting of the Eyrie to Mr. Ko Tung, in which Your Excellency is informed that the Secretary of State cannot agree to consult the Law Officers of the Crown about the matter.
2.
The question which I desired should be submitted to the Law Officers was whether in the event of a dispute involving questions of law arising between a Civil servant and the Government, it is constitutional for the Government to decide in its own favour, rejecting all proposals for a settlement on amicable terms, or by friendly arbitration; more especially in the case of a Chief Justice of a Colony to whom remedy by way of appeal to the Courts is, owing to his position, denied. With deference this puts the Chief Justice in the position of being without legal redress, contrary to the Charters of liberty. The question involved is one which affects all Colonial Civil Servants, and I venture with respect again to urge