TNAG-0700-FCO40-852-Appointment-of-District-and-High-Court-Judges-in-Hong-Kong-1978 — Page 62

STAFF IN CONFIDENCE

CONFIDENTIAL

HKA 373/393/3.

R. LIVED

* NO. 51

18 APR 1978

13

HKA 373/393/3 PP20/16-C IV

J M Rowlands Esq JP

Secretary for the Civil Service

Government Secretariat

HONG KONG

LABT

RAF

INROCK

No

PA

17 APFII 1978

NEXG

REF.

16 08

鼻

JISTRY

Action Taken

VACANCY FOR A JUDGE OF THE HIGH COURT

1. Thank you for your letter of 21 March recommending Mr F Addison, District Judge, for promotion to Judge of the High Court. I can confirm that Judge Addison's promotion is provisionally approved. Would you please ascertain in the usual way whether he wishes his name to be submitted and, if so, obtain from him the standard undertaking about subsequent private practice?

2.

In considering your recommendation, we took into account not only the candidates mentioned in your letter but also three Judges from outside Hong Kong: Renn Davis CJ (Solomon Islands), Wheeler CJ (Kaduna State, Nigeria) and Sir Georges Souyave (New Hebrides), all of whom have expressed an interest in serving in Hong Kong and about whom Tony Rushford, Deputy Legal Adviser, wrote to Briggs CJ on 20 March. In the event, we decided that neither of these three should be preferred to Addison for two reasons; firstly that none of them is immediately available and, secondly, because if, as we understand, there is shortly to be an increase in the establishment of High Court Judges by three, that would seem a better occasion to introduce someone from outside Hong Kong.

3. We hope, therefore, that when vacancies next occur for High Court Judges, the Judicial Services Commission can consider these three candidates along with any local names that might be suggested. Of the three, only Renn Davis is on permanent and pensionable terms. The important question in his case is whether the Solomons are prepared to let him go and, if so, how soon. We can, of course, find this out quickly when you advise us of a vacancy. Both Wheeler and Souyave see their positions in their own areas as now pretty tenuous and could probably make them- selves available reasonably quickly. One advantage in Renn Davis' being offered a Hong Kong appointment would be that the Chief Justiceship of the Solomons would thereby become vacant and might well be attractive to someone now serving in Hong Kong.

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