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Friday, November 10, 1972
AMENDING LEGISLATION ON CONTRACT INFORCEMENTS
The existing requirement that some types of contract must satisfy
formalities if they are to be enforceable is done away with under an
amending bill to be introduced into the Legislative Council shortly.
The bill seeks to repeal a section in the principal Ordinance which
provides that no action may be brought to enforce these contracts unless
there is a note or memorandum in writing evidencing the agreement signed by
the person to be charged.
It is the Law Amendment and Reform (Consolidation) (Amendment)
Bill 1972, published in today's Government Gazette for general information.
A Government spokesman said that over the years, in England and
in Hong Kong, formal requirements of proof have been relaxed in many branches
of the law, and now most contracts may be proved by a variety of types of
evidence.
"The retention of this section in the law of Hong Kong, which imposes
formal requirements on four dissmilar types of contract, is thus no longer
With one exception, the comparable provisions were repealed in
necessary.
England some years ago," he said,
The four types of contract concerned are (i) on a special promise
by an executor or administrator to answer damages out of his own estates;
(ii) on a special promise to answer for the debt, default or miscarriage of
another; (iii) upon an agreement made in consideration of marriage; and (iv)
upon an agreement that is not to be performed within one year of the making
thereof.
The amending