TNAG-0499-FCO40-564-Administration-of-justice-in-Hong-Kong-1974 — Page 172

Our ref: HKK 14/6

Sir Denis Dobson KCB OBE QC

HOUSE OF LORDS

London SWIA OPW

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London S.W.1

11 January 1974

should be

gm Jan

Dear Denis

HONG KONG: JUDICIAL SYSTEM

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9 Poney

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Many thanks for your letter of 20 December enclosing a copy of Jackson-Lipkin's letter to you of 3 Dec- ember, and also the enclosures referred to in it. As requested, I now return the latter.

I have not kept copies of these enclosures (which fall into two parts, those on the Treasury tag which are Jackson-Lipkin's own miscellany and those in the black clip which he borrowed from the Chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association) but have read them through carefully and made a note of the main criticisms and suggestions.

A number of these points were put to us last August, when Lord Gardiner came to see us on behalf of Justice, accompanied by Mr Silkin QC MP, Mr Sargant, and Mr Eddis from Hong Kong and Jackson- Lipkin himself. As a result we communicated with the Governor and are awaiting his considered views on the representations made to us by Justice.

Some of the points put to us by Jackson-Lipkin are echoed in the article to the Times of 8 January by their legal correspondents (who came to the Head of our Hong Kong Department and myself last November) and we have telegraphed to the Governor asking how the matter stands.

Of the main points raised

(a) no one would quarrel with the aim of

increasing legal aid for persons accused before District Courts and also making it available in some classes of case tried in magistrates courts;

(b) likewise,