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19. The Supreme Court shall ordinarily sit at Shanghai; but may, if it seems expedient, sit at any other place within the limits of this Order, and may at any time transfer its ordinary sittings to any such place as the Secretary of State approves. Under this Article the Judges may sit at the same time at different places, and each sitting shall be deemed to be a sitting of the Supreme Court.
20. The Judge, or under his directions an Assistant Judge, may visit, in a magisterial or judicial capacity, any place in China, and there inquire of, or hear and determine, any case, civil or criminal, and may examine any records or other documents in any Provincial Court, and give directions as to the keeping thereof.
21. Subject to any Rules of Court, the Judge shall make any such arrangements as he thinks fit for the distribution of the business of the Court.
Full Court.
22.--(1) There shall be a Full Court for the purposes described in this Order.
(2) The Full Court shall be composed of the Judges and, so long as there is only one Assistant Judge appointed under Article 7 (2), the Chief Justice of Hong Kong; provided that if at any time the Chief Justice of Hong Kong is unable to sit, a Judge of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong, or other fit person qualified as provided in Article 7 (2) and appointed for the purpose, on the proposal of the Judge, by the Minister under his hand and seal, may sit in lieu of the said Chief Justice. For purposes connected with the work of the Full Court the Chief Justice of Hong Kong, or in his absence a Judge of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong or other fit person appointed as provided above, shall have in China all the power and authority of a Judge of the Supreme Court.
The Judge shall as a general rule preside in the Full Court; provided, however, that the Chief Justice of Hong Kong, if his appointment as such chief justice is earlier in date than the appointment of the Judge as such judge, shall preside whenever he is present in the Full Court.
Provided that for the purpose of hearing interlocutory appeals and appeals from a Provincial Court, and also for the purposes of Articles 93, 99, 128 (2), 129, 130, 131, 142 and 143 the Full Court may be composed of two judges only. In such case, if there is a difference of opinion; the opinion of the senior judge shall prevail.
Provided further that for the purposes of Articles 132, 140, 141, 145, 146, 147 and 148 the Judge may exercise all the powers of the Full Court.
(3) The Judge shall have power, for special reasons to be recorded in the minutes, to order that any of the following matters shall be heard and determined or dealt with in the manner provided by this Order by himself alone instead of by the Full Court, and
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any judgment or order given or made by him in any such matter shall be deemed to be made by a judgment or order of the Full Court..
(a) Criminal appeals in cases where the trial has taken place before a Judge of the Supreme Court other than him- self or before a Provincial Court, and where notice of appeal or application for leave to appeal has been given or any question of law has been reserved for the opinion of the Full Court, and appeals under Article 93.
(b) Civil appeals from the decision of a Provincial Court.
23. When an appeal is pending before the Full Court, and only one of the Judges is available for the purpose of hearing and determining the same, the Minister may, by writing under his hand and seal, appoint any fit person, proposed by such Judge, to sit as a member of the Full Court to hear and deter- mine such appeal; and for such purpose the person so appointed shall have all the power and authority of an Assistant Judge of the Supreme Court.
(ii) Provincial Courts.
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His 24. (1) Every Provincial Court shall be styled Britannic Majesty's Court at Canton (or as the case may be).
(2) Every commissioned Consular officer, with the exception of those at Shanghai and with such other exceptions (if any) as the Secretary of State thinks fit to make, shall for and in his Consular district hold and form a Court, in this Order referred to as a Provincial Court.
(3) Where the Minister appoints any person to be Acting Consul-General, Consul, or Vice-Consul at any port or place in China at which no commissioned Consular officer is resident, that person shall hold and form a Provincial Court for the district for which he is appointed to act.
(4) Where one or more commissioned Consular officers are stationed in the Consular district of another commissioned Consular officer, the Minister may, if he think fit, appoint the commissioned Consular officer or officers so stationed to be an additional Judge or additional Judges of the Provincial Court of the district.
(5) Where an officer is so appointed he shall hear and deter- mine such matters, civil and criminal, being within the juris- diction of a Provincial Court, as the Consular officer to whom the district is assigned, with the sanction of the Judge of the Supreme Court, directs.
(6) Where an officer is appointed under this Article he may sit at the same time and place as the Consular officer to whom the district is assigned, or in a different place, and each sitting
shall be deemed a sitting of the Provincial Court of the district.
(7) Every Provincial Court may, with the approval of the Judge of the Supreme Court, appoint a competent person, or persons, to perform such duties and to exercise such powers in
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