CO129-386 - Public Offices & Others - 1911 — Page 141

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139

possibly by a reference to the L.0.

them up and possess all the other powers legally resulting from their registration in Hong Kong, it is impossible to deny that the Shanghai Court has a reasonable claim to exercise certain jurisdiction either concurrent or auxiliary with regard to such Companies.

The main difficulty seems to me to be this.

I am not clear that the jurisdiction at present exercisable by the Shanghai Court under the China Orders in Council would enable it to deal at all with Companies some of the Directors or members of which are not British subjects, or that existing treaties leave it open to His Majesty to confer such power (if it does not already exist) on the Shanghai Ccurt by Order in Council.

It will, however, be remembered that the Shanghai Court has already held that under the "omnibus clause", article 89 of the Order in Council of 1904, the Imperial Companies Act, 1908,is in force in Shanghai, and that Piggott C.J. has denied this in his judgment in the case reported on 251/10.

This point as to

iurisdiction will have to

be cleared up before we can adopt either of the alter- natives proposed, i.e.

(1)

The institution of a Shanghai register which means the creation of Shanghai Companies under Shanghai jurisdiction to the entire exclusion of that of Hong Kong, or

(2)

the continuance on the Hong Kong register

of Companies trading in Shanghai, and the giving of certain powers with regard to them to the Shanghai

Assuming

Court.