TNAG-0085-FCO40-121-Reform-of-the-Administration-of-Law-1968 — Page 45

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Mr. Mason

Having regard to the correspondence with

F

Mr. Jackson-Lipkin at (65) and (71) on HWB.1/18, I

think that it will be difficult to tell Mr. de Basto

that he cannot see Lord Shepherd. I see that the

earlier correspondence suggested that Mr. Sanguinetti of the Hong Kong Bar and Mr. Tom Sargant, who is the Secretary of "Justice" in the United Kingdom, should

bę members of the parties which wished to call upon

the Secretary of State. Mr. de Basto does not say

whether he wishes to bring these gentlemen with him.

If he wishes to bring Mr. Sanguinetti (an ex-magistrate

whose eccentric behaviour obliged us to ask for his resignation), we can scarcely refuse but I do not think Lord Shepherd need receive Mr. Sargant who is not a member of the Hong Kong Bar and indeed is not even a lawyer.. If Lord Shepherd agrees to see Mr. de Basto, I suggest that the latter be asked to say whether he will be accompanied by any other members of the Hong Kong Bar and, if so, who they are.

2. If Lord Shepherd is to see Mr. de Basto I suggest

that a brief be now prepared, which I should like to see in draft, As indicated in Mr. Gaminara's minute of 18 July, points (i), (ii) and (iii) in Mr.de Basto's

letter have been raised by the Hong Kong Bar before. On point (i), however, they have apparently advanced

their demands for they now seem to contend that all

appointments to the Supreme Court Bench should be from

the local Bar or from the English Bar. On point (i1)

no reasoned justification for the assertion is advanced and in l(e) of the Bar Association's original resolutions at Flag 'A' it is merely stated that the

policy objected to is "undesirable" because it is

"not conducive to the proper administration of the

Criminal Law", which really takes one no further.

The Attorney General tells me that he gives two or

three prosecution briefs per month to private practitioners. I suspect the underlying point of (11) is a desire to obtain more business for the Bar. If point (iii) refers merely to secondment between the Judiciary and the Legal Department, this has in fact been stopped at our request. If, on the

other hand, the contention is that a member of the

Legal Department should never be considered for appointment to the Judiciary or vice versa, Mr.de Basto

/will

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