TNAG-1589-FCO40-21741-Future-of-the-judiciary-in-Hong-Kong.-Part-1-of-2-1987 — Page 157

of the weight to be attributed to each of the other causes which might be said to be within the category of human error in the forensic community. It will be more productive to take the positive line of finding a better way rather than apportioning blame.

This approach requires everyone in the community to accept that each of these causes and any others which may come to light in discussion are playing a part. That should help towards co-operation, acceptance and understanding of responsibility and appropriate amendment of the systems.

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any

Control of the Lists

6.

Who can take the lead? How can improved co-operation begin?

I offer an answer by again quoting from my earlier writing :-

The purpose of this part of the paper is to emphasise that the quest for efficiency will not succeed unless the Court is and is seen to be in reasonable charge of its proper business. An adequate service to the public will be provided only if the last word as to when and where a case will be tried lies with the court and not amongst the parties and their advisers, still less with one party and even less with one adviser. It is true that the prime function of a court is to resolve the disputes of the public but against that must be balanced, first. that resources are finite, secondly, that the function of assessing competing priorities and relative urgency must lie with the court and thirdly, that the function of preventing delay is also for the court.

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In order to strike the right balance a judiciary must act cohesively. One judge acting alone will have no effect against general laxity. The entire forensic community must be imbued with the philosophy that the court will manage its own business. The lead must come from the top and be followed throughout the system. An appellate tribunal holding this philosophy will, when examining a complaint about a judge, be careful to discover whether the judge was not justifiably avoiding unnecessary waste of time.

From this it would follow in Hong Kong that the Judiciary - and only the Judiciary will decide where, when and in what numbers the courts

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