TNAG-0398-FCO40-444-Appointments-to-supreme-and-district-courts-from-the-Bar-in--1973 — Page 58

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Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London S.W.1

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27 June, 1973

I wrote to you on 12 June in reply to your letter of

5 June about the new Bills which were being considered by the

Hong Kong Legislative Council.

Since then we have heard from the Governor that, before

the copy of your letter reached him, he had decided, in

consultation with the new Chief Justice, to adjourn the debate

on the Magistrates (Amendment) Bill. The need for it can

therefore be reconsidered in the light of the fact that two

additional District Judgeships have recently been created.

It seems that the extra work load could be carried by the

District Courts and that no increase in the Magistrates' powers

may be necessary, at least for the time being. Furthermore the Governor has under consideration the possibility of appointing

practising members of the Hong Kong bar to the two new District

Judgeships.

This should meet your members' most pressing concerns,

particularly their worries about the absence of legal aid in the

Magistrates Courts and the calibre and origins of the District

Court judges.

The Right Hon. The Lord Gardiner

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