TNAG-1734-FCO40-2447-Minutes-and-Hansards-of-the-Legislative-Council-of-Hong-Kong-1988 — Page 108

Legislative Council 6th July, 1988

Complex Commercial Chimes Bill 1988

Speech by Mr

J.J. Swaine

MR. SWAINE:

Sir,

le

1988

The Complex Commercial Crimes Bill/has had a long and

chequered history, and introduces some much needed reform in the

trial of such crimes. The difficulty has been to ensure that these

reforms are not introduced at the expense of fundamental principle

relating to the burden on the prosecution to prove the guilt of the

accused and to the right of the accused to silence.

It has been necessary to ensure that only such crimes as

might properly be described as complex commercial crimes are subject

to the new procedures, and this is achieved by the definition clause

3(b)(ii) which by the deletion of the comma after the word fraud,

makes clear that the fraud or dishonesty is in a commercial context,

and that it must be both serious and complex.

after

Much of the improved procedures will lie in the preparatory

hearing which will take place/before the jury is empanelled. Under

clause 9, it is for the judge to decide whether such a preparatory

hearing should take place, and he may act on the application either

of the prosecutor or of the person indicted or of his own motion.